Friends, Boys, and Shinigami SPA
by MadHope
Summary: Rukia Kuchiki is a new kid at Shinigami School of Performing Arts. She lives with her brother, Byakuya, and his annoying girlfriend Suki. Dealing with her is the easy part. Now Rukia has to handle his ex, weird girls, insane teachers, and boys. Finished!
1. Chapter 1

_**When you go would you have the guts to say**_

"_**I don't love you like I did yesterday?"**_

_**Well come on, come on!…**_

Rukia Kuchiki let the song blast in her ears, staring out the window of her adopted older brother's black catalac. She reveled in the feeling of being in the bubble while she was in the car, the music on her iPod turned up in her ears so that it was the only sound that reached her ears. It felt as if, while she was in this bubble, she could see everyone and observe but she was invisible to their eyes. She was forced to sit in the backseat of the car since her older brother, Byakuya, was driving and his "girlfriend" sat in the passenger seat.

Personally, Rukia hated her. She was bubbly and sweet like tooth-aching candy around Byakuya, but secretly turned sour and bratty around other people, namely Rukia. Her name was Suki, or something like that. Rukia never made a point to keep up with names. She looked up at the front where Suki was babbling on and on about something (probably something stupid), batting her mascara-drenched eyelashes and fixing her long blond hair every two second, while Byakuya sat stolidly at the wheel, keeping his eyes on the road while occasionally nodding at the appropriate times.

Byakuya looked a lot like Rukia; They were both very pale with dark black hair, though his was long and hers came out in flips at her shoulders. Both siblings had the tendency to be ice-cold if they needed to, and very stubborn, but that was where the similarities stopped. Where Rukia had large, indigo, doe-like eyes, Byakuya had fierce, unnerving black ones. While Byakuya was trimmed, well-kempt, and mannerly, Rukia had a rebellious streak and didn't think much of rules she didn't agree with.

_**I don't love you like I did yesterday**_

_**I don't love you like I did yesterday**_

Rukia sighed out loud, earning a glance from Suki who probably thought it was a complaint about her talking, but ignored it. Finally the car stopped and Rukia peered out the window up at the large school to which kids hurried towards across the campus, on their way to their classes. Rukia grabbed her bag and stepped out, waving to her brother, who nodded, and ignoring Suki before turning to walk calmly towards the building. It was her first day at this new school, and she had to admit that she was nervous.

Looking down at her schedule to see what class she had first, she walked inside the large building. She looked around, her eyes scanning at all the students for any signs or anything that would point new kids to their classes. Finding none, she side and started to pull out her pen and notepad out of her bag.

Rukia opened to a fresh piece of paper in the tiny notebook and wrote, _No idea where to go on the first day. There are no signs, so get ready to ask people for directions. _Sighing and started her way through the crowd, she was barely paying attention when she felt a body collide with hers, sending them both to the ground.

Hearing a body other than hers hit the floor, she opened her eyes to see another girl sitting up, flustered, across from her in the middle of the things that had scattered from their bags. The other girl looked at her in surprise.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed, jumping forward to help gather the things Rukia had dropped, "I'm so, so sorry!" Rukia smiled at the girl's embarrassment.

"It's alright, it was my fault," she reassured her, "I wasn't paying attention." The other students curved around them, some giving them strange looks while others ignored them as they retrieved their things. Finally the two girls stood, and Rukia noticed that they were about the same size. The other girl blushed and smiled.

"Sorry about that," she said, then held out her hand, "I'm Momo, by the way. Momo Hinamori." Rukia smiled and took her hand.

"Rukia Kuchiki," she responded. They let their hands dropped and Momo looked around.

"So are you new here?" she asked, and Rukia nodded. Momo smiled.

"Me too! But I guess that means you don't know where to go, either?" Rukia smiled sadly and shook her head.

"No idea. I was just about to ask somebody before we ran into each other." Momo's childlike eyes lit up.

"That's a great idea! Why didn't I think of that?" Now that they were standing, Rukia observed her new friend. She was about her height (which, sadly, isn't a lot) with brown hair tied into a messy bun and large, sweet brown eyes. She had a heart- shaped face and very petite.

"So who were you going to ask?" Momo asked, snapping Rukia out of her thoughts, "I don't see anyone that doesn't look kind of scary, you know?" Rukia now looked around to see what Momo was talking about. Most of the other students around them looked older, and most were with a group of friends or had intimidating looks on their faces. Rukia swallowed her fear and lifted her head. She refused to be intimidated by a bunch of older kids, and walked up to a girl that looked a few years older than them who was reading a book while leaning against one of the pillars. She had long, shiny blonde hair and bright turquoise eyes.

She seemed the least scary to Rukia; she wore simple jeans and a jacket over a blue v-neck. Rukia tapped on her shoulder, Momo hiding tentatively behind her back. The girl looked over at them in surprise for a second, and then closed her book.

"Hello," Rukia said confidently, "We're new here and were just wondering if you would show us to our classes or at least tell us how to get there." Rukia held her breath as the girl look them over thoughtfully.

"Hmmm…. Ok," she said, shrugging. Momo let out an audible sigh of relief while Rukia handed the older girl her schedule. She looked it over, then handed it back.

"Follow me," she said in a light voice before turning away and walking through the crowd. Rukia and Momo had to almost run to keep up with the girl's long legs so they didn't get lost amongst all the people. Finally the girl stopped in front of a door with a plaque on the wall outside reading _Urahara- Band/Orchestra. _

"Thanks," Rukia said, and the girl smiled.

"No problem. I like new kids. They make me laugh," she said, giggling. Rukia and Momo exchanged a glance. The older girl was surprisingly nice, but a little strange.

"You better get in there, too, Momo," the girl said, "You have that class, also." The two younger girls looked at her in surprise.

"I don't remember showing you my schedule," Momo said nervously, eying the girl.

"Or her name," Rukia added. The girl giggled.

"That's because you didn't. Don't glare at me, Rukia!" she laughed, "I love new kids, they're so funny! Well, I gotta go. Bye bye, Rukia, bye bye Momo!" The girl started walking back gracefully, almost at a skip, but something popped into Rukia's mind and she whipped around, calling after the girl.

"What's your name?" The girl stopped and turned to them, tilting her head thoughtfully.

"Myoka. Well, see you later, bye new kids!" And with that, she was gone**.**


	2. Chapter 2

Rukia and Momo walked into their first class together and looked around. There was a large stage with chairs set out on it, each labeled with colorful signs, separating them into musical sections. Rukia now noticed as Momo shifted uncomfortably that she held what looked like a violin case in her hand. Rukia herself had her flute in her bag. They waved and split ways, going to their own section. She now saw that the chairs each had names posted on them and started searching for her own. Once she reached it she sat down, pulling her flute out of her bag, which she set on the floor under her chair.

More and more people got seated, and she found herself in between two interesting *ahem*gay*ahem* looking guys. The one to her left had long, wavy blonde hair and brown eyes, and was actually kind of good-looking, while the one to her right had short blue hair and two feathers coming up from the corner of his right eye and two going to the side.

Suddenly her view of the room turned orange as someone with bright, spiky orange hair sat in front of her. He was pretty tall, and her being, er, vertically challenged didn't help much. She tapped on the guy's shoulder and he turned so she could see his face. He had deep amber eyes and thin lips that were set in a permanent frown on his face, and she had to admit that he was pretty good looking.

"Can you, you know, slide down or maybe switch seats with someone else?" Rukia asked, "I… can't see." Her face flushed in embarrassment, and the guy smirked.

"Aren't you a little young for this class? I think elementary school is a few blocks away." Rukia's jaw dropped. Here she had just asked politely if he could move so she could see, and he was insulting her! Rukia glared at him defiantly.

"Hey carrot top, isn't clown school on the other side of Karakura?" she growled. The boy glared.

"I was thinking about moving, but after that, you can forget about it, midget," he snapped, turning back around.

"Fine! I didn't need your help, anyways," she muttered. Rukia sighed inwardly, at a loss. She still couldn't see, and she knew carrot top here wasn't going to help her out. She would ask the guys next to her, but they seemed too absorbed looking at themselves in their hand-held mirrors to be of any use to her. Finally Rukia sighed. Only one thing to do. She could hear the teacher talking now, a man's voice, and she didn't have long until he was bound to tell them to start playing, so started swinging her legs back and forth.

_Thunk, thunk, thunk._

Her feet hit the bottom of carrot-top's head methodically, and she almost laughed when Rukia saw him tense up. She could tell he was trying hard not to turn around and yell at her to quit it. But he didn't, so she continued, kicking her legs a little harder.

_Thunk, thunk, thunk, thunk._

For a second he remained still, and she smirked, until suddenly he whipped around and glared at me.

"Stop kicking my chair, damn midget!" Rukia glared at the name.

"Then move seats, carrot-top!"

"Not on your life, dwarf!"

"Stupid Neanderthal!"

"Annoying elf!"

"Damn Strawberry!"

"Bratty Leprechaun!" They were both standing now, having a screaming match while everyone simply watched.

"Well well well," a deep voice suddenly cut through their yells. Everyone turned to the source of the voice, which was a man in front of the stage with messy blond hair wearing robes, sandals, and a white and green striped hat. He didn't seem mad or even phased by the yelling; he was actually smiling. Rukia could only assume that this was the teacher, Professor Urahara.

"Is there a reason you two look like you're about to kill each other?" Professor Urahara asked, an amused smile on his face. Both of them opened their mouths to respond, but the guy to Rukia's right answered first.

"Apparently miss Kuchiki can't see over Kurosaki, but he refuses to move," he answered in a bored tone.

"So they sank to insults," the guy to her left finished off, "Pitiful, really." This earned him a glare from both objects of attention. simply widened his smile.

"I see. Well, Miss Kuchiki, you can trade seats with Yumichika, if that's alright when him. And in the future, both of you please practice some restraint and have your fight after class. Other than that, I don't care if you start wrestling each other in the hallway." Rukia nodded and switched seat with Yumichika, sparing a glare at the boy, Kurosaki, before they all sat down. Once they settled everyone turned their attention back to Professor Urahara.

"Well," he said, "Now that a death match has been averted, how about we learn some about music? And each other if we care enough. Now…" The class went on, and Rukia learned that Mr. Urahara was pretty laid back, but knew what he was talking about when it came to music. They played a little bit and Urahara evaluated their skills. When the bell rang everyone scurried out, Kurosaki throwing a, "See ya, midget" Rukia's way, which earned him a , "Bite me, carrot-top." Momo waited for her at the door and the two walked out together.

"So," Momo drew out, "What exactly happened with you and that Kurosaki kid? I heard it was something over a seat… I mean it was weird, 'cuz you two just started yelling at each other." Rukia sighed and scowled.

"That idiot," she muttered, "I just asked him if he could trade seats with someone so I could see, and he insulted me! So I called him something back and apparently that was too much for mr. egocentral! So when he turned around I started to kick the back of his seat, and the idiot overreacted and we just kinda got carried away, I guess." Momo giggled.

"You guess? You guys were so loud, I bet people in the next room could hear you two! It really looked like you two were going to kill each other." Rukia just shrugged, ready for the conversation to be over. Luckily the subject was dropped and Momo started talking about some girl she sat next to in Professor Urahara's class. After a while they compared schedules and saw that they had different classes second period, so they waved and split ways.

Rukia looked at her schedule once again while trying not to run into anyone. Again she was at a loss of where to go, so she looked around for someone to ask. Through the crowd she spotted a young boy almost shorter than her with spiky, white hair and ice blue eyes. He looked annoyed as he stood next to a group of kids, but Rukia couldn't really tell if he was with them or not. She walked towards him confidently. He turned his eyes to her when she reached him, the same bored expression on his face.

"Hey, I'm new, and I didn't know if you were or not, but I was wondering if you could tell me how to get to my next class," she said evenly. Unlike Myoka, the boy didn't seem surprised that she asked him. He sighed and shrugged.

"Fine," he said, "Give me your schedule." She handed it over and he glanced at it before nodding and giving it back.

"C'mon," he said, turning away. Rukia walked beside him. It was easy to keep up since he was so short.

"Are you sure you want to leave your, er, friends?" Rukia asked. The boy shrugged,

"It doesn't matter," he said, "I'll go back if I want to." He stopped outside a door and Rukia smiled at him politely.

"Thanks for your help, er…"

"Toushiro Hitsugaya." Rukia nodded and they said short good-byes before he walked off and Rukia entered her classroom.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey! I know I haven't talked yet, but I just wanted to get this started so soon that I forgot about it! Anyways, I hope you like this! I know they're a bit short, but they'll get better, I promise! So give me suggestions and stuff. Tell me: Who do you want Orihime to be with? Uryu? Ulquiorra? Grimmjow? Well, let me know!**

**Enjoy!**

After a few more classes, it was finally time for lunch. Rukia walked into the lunchroom, keeping an eye out for Momo. She had brought her lunch that day, so she didn't need to get into the lunch line. All that was left was to find somewhere to sit. As she walked through the crowd someone bumped into her, making her stumble. Rukia straightened herself before she fell and turned to the person who had crashed into her.

It was a tall, busty girl with long green hair, skimpy clothes, and excess make-up. She turned and glared at Rukia.

"Hey, watch where you're going! What're you, new or something?" Rukia was offended; after all, this girl was the one that bumped into her and should be apologizing! But she didn't want to start a fight, so she opened to mouth to apologize and excuse herself, but the other girl kept going.

"Do you know who I am?" she asked, "A shorty like you should be honored I'm even talking to you! Next time, brat, watch where you're going." The green haired girl walked off, leaving Rukia fuming. What a pompous, rude, egotistical…. Rukia curse the girl over and over in her head. She didn't know her name, and she hoped that she never had to.

"I see you ran into Neiliel," a voice came from behind her. Ruikia turned and found that the source of the voice came from a boyish looking girl with short back hair and greenish-grey eyes. She wore torn jeans and a grey hoodie.

"I'm Tatsuki Arasawa," she introduced, holding out her hand. Rukia shook it.

"Rukia Kuchiki."

"Just ignore Neliel," she said, "That girl has such a big ego they had to make the school's ceilings higher to make it all fit." Rukia laughed and Tatsuki smiled.

"You must be new. Why don't you come sit with me? My friends won't mind, and if they do they can shove it up their asses." The two laughed at the comment and Rukia followed Tatsuki to her tabled.

"Yo," Tatsuki said, and everyone at the table looked at her. She pointed a thumb at Rukia.

"This is Rukia Kuchiki. She's new here, and she's gonna sit with us." Some of them greeted her, others just nodded at her and went back to their own business. Rukia sat next to Tatsuki and observed the other people. The girl Tatsuki sat by was a busty girl with long orange hair and bright grey eyes. She seemed like kind of an air head, but was bubbly and sweet. Tatsuki introduce her to be Orihime Inoue.

"Hi Rukia!" the girl said enthusiastically, shaking her hand until it felt like it was going to fly off, "Wow, you're so pretty! I'm sure we'll be great friends! Want some of my peanut butter, mushroom, pickle, bean jam surprise?" Rukia politely declined the strange food and went back to surveying the other students. Across from her was a slightly nerdy- looking boy with black hair who was texting on his phone the entire time and didn't notice her presence. Tatsuki told her his name was Mizuiro. To his right was a girl with red hair and glasses who eyed Rukia before going back to ogle at Orihime. This was Chizuru, who Tatsuki whispered was a lesbian pervert.

Next to her was a sad- looking boy with blonde hair that covered up his right eye. He was ignoring everyone, poking his untouched food with a fork.

"That's Kira," Tatsuki explained, "He doesn't talk a lot and is pretty depressed all the time, but he's a good guy." Next to him was a girl with blackish purple hair and purple eyes. She wore a purple choker and black clothes. Her face was blank as she sat with her hands folded neatly in her lap. On the other side of Orihime was a man with dark black hair, matching eyes, and a 69 tattooed on his face named Hisagi.

On his left was a tall, beautiful busty woman (even bigger than Orihime's, and that's saying something) with long strawberry- blonde hair and a loud laugh named Rangiku. Across from her, looking annoyed, Rukia recognized Tourshiro from earlier. They nodded at each other and Rukia relaxed.

"So how do you like it here so far?" she turned to Orihime, who had pointed the question to her.

"Oh, I guess it's alright," she said, smiling.

"Really? I thought you might not like it since you and Kurosaki had that fight." Rukia looked at Orihime in surprise.

"Oh, sorry, I must sound creepy, huh?" Orihime gigged, blushing from embarrassment, "I'm in your band class. You probably didn't see me because I was in the back. But you and Kurosaki really had a big fight, didn't you? I was scared you guys were gonna hurt each other!"

"What are you babbling on about, Orihime?" Tatsuki asked, raising an eyebrow at her friend.

"Oh, sorry! Well I was in band and we were all getting ready and I was a little late 'cuz I didn't know where to go, so I had to ask directions from this one girl and then I finally got there and there were name tags on the seats, so I sat where I should and…"

Rukia rubbed her temples as Orihime went on. She wasn't the only one. Mizuiro had stopped texting and was now staring at the babbling girl and Hisagi was staring at the girl with an eyebrow raised. Rangiku was giggling at Toshiro's tortured expression and Kira had stopped poking at his food to stare at the girl. Finally, noticed everyone had gone silent, Orihime halted her story and looked around.

"What?" she asked, clearly confused. Tatsuki shook her head and smiled amusedly.

"You sure know how to drag a story out, Orihime. Anyways, why don't you just skip to the part with Rukia and Kurosaki."

"Right!" Orihime exclaimed, "Well everything was going fine until suddenly Ichigo yelled at Rukia to quit kicking at the back of his chair, and she yelled back, and soon they were standing up acting as if they were going to murder each other right in the middle of Professor Urahara's class!" Tatsuki turned to Rukia, her eyebrows raised.

"You and Kurosaki, huh?" Rukia's face flushed at what she was implying.

"No, nothing like that!" she protested, and explained for the second time that day what had happened. By the end Tatsuki was laughing and Rukia was angry once again from remembering the stupid carrot- top.

"That's just like him," she said, "You know, he's not that bad of a guy. While you're here, you'll hear a lot of rumors about him, but don't believe him. He's actually an alright guy if you can get past his idiocy." Rukia raised an eyebrow.

"How do you know?" she asked. Tatsuki smiled sadly at her.

"We were best friends since kinder garden to sophomore year of high school."

**So? How was it? :) Hope you liked it! I'll get the next one uploaded soon! And expect cliffhangers. A lot of them. :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Here's another one! Tell me what you think, ok? And just to let you know incase you didn't, there WILL be couples other than IchiRuki. Sorry if you don't like them. Btw, I'm not obsessed with My Chemical Romance or anything, I just like their songs and that's what popped into my head at this beginning scene... so yeah. Well,**

**Enjoy!**

The sun was high in the sky and kids swarmed out of the school, trying to escape the heat. Rukia walked across the grounds of her new school, ignoring everyone and letting the music on her iPod blare in her ears.

**_Because the drugs never work_**

**_They're gonna give you a smirk_**

**_'Cuz they got methods to keeping you clean_**

Rukia sighed, frowning as she pondered over what Tatsuki had said. Her and Ichigo had been best friends? And for that long? She couldn't understand why someone would want to hang around the stupid carrot head for that long. Rukia smirked as she thought of something. His name was Ichigo. And he had orange hair.

_Strawberry._

Rukia smirked to herself. She would definitely use that one the next time they met. She sighed and wiped the subject out of her mind, tired of thinking about it.. A honk sounded through the air and Rukia turned to see Byakuya sitting behind the wheel of his Cadillac looking agitated as Suki continued to honk the horn. Rukia smirked again. She knew Byuakuya was embarrassed; he would never make a loud display like that, even to get her attention. Rukia made her way over to them quickly to spare her brother even more embarrassment and climbed in.

"It's about time Rukia," Suki said in a sugary, sickeningly fake voice, "You really shouldn't have those little ear things in when your brother is trying to get a hold of you!" Rukia ignored her, turning up her music louder. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Suki huff at her failed attempt to bait Rukia and smiled as they pulled away from the school.

"Did you do well?" Byakuya asked. It was then Rukia took out the ear buds and sighed inwardly. That was her brother, always straight to the point.

"Yes," she said, "My teachers seem nice, but my ballet teacher wasn't there. Her assistant, some woman named Soi Fon, taught the class today." Suddenly he brother stiffened (more than he usually is already) and he tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

"So what is your teacher's name?" Byakuya kept his voice level and cool, but Rukia could tell he was on edge, though she didn't know why.

"I don't know," Rukia replied, "Soi Fon just told us we would find out tomorrow. How come? Do you know who it is?" Byakuya didn't answer.

_It can't be her, he thought, It's been so long… There's no way it's her… _Suki eyed her boyfriend. They hadn't been together for long, but for as long as they had been together Suki had never seen him this close to breaking down before. He never even got nervous, so why did he look like he was now? Whatever it was, Suki was determined not to let it or anything else get in the way of her and her Bya-pie.

"Where's Hisana?" Rukia's voice cut through the silence through the backseat.

"At home with the babysitter," Suki responded shortly, since Byakuaya seemed like he didn't hear her. Though Suki and Rukia didn't like each other at all, Suki knew how protective Rukia could get over Hisana. Hisana was Hisana's little sister, the youngest of the Kuchiki siblings. She was born minutes before their mother had died, and a month before their father followed.

The car pulled up in front of the large white house and the three stepped out. Byakuya remained silent, paler than usual, his mind apparently somewhere else. Rukia lead the way, eager to see how Hisana was doing and to hang out with her for a while. She walked inside, letting the others close the door behind them and headed to the living room. There she found Hisana and her babysitter giggling while holding stuffed animals. Once she walked in Hisana's large, innocent eyes turned to her and her smile widened.

"Ruka!" she exclaimed, clumsily starting her way towards her older sister. Rukia giggled and met her half way, pulling her up into her arms.

"Hey, Hisa," Rukia greeted warmly, a genuine smile spreading on her face, "Have fun today?" Hisana nodded frantically, holding her stuffed bunny tight to her face.

"Well that's good," she muttered, giving Hisana a light kiss on the forehead. The little two-year old giggled and started struggling in Rukia's arms, so she let her down. The babysitter stood and smiled at Rukia, who returned it. Senna had been the Kuchiki's babysitter ever since Mr. Kuchiki had passed away. She was a sweet girl with purple hair tied up with a red ribbon and pretty golden- brown eyes.

"Hey Senna," Rukia greeted, "Hisana was good, right?" This question was asked every time she came home, and Senna smiled at the familiarity.

"Absolutely," she replied, "So how was your first day?" Byakuya had gone off to his study, and Suki disappeared probably to fix her make up.

Rukia collapsed on the couch with a sighed, watching Hisana move her rabbit in a gesture of movements that she guessed was supposed to be walking.

"I don't know," she said as Senna sat next to her and listened, "I mean… It was alright I guess, but…" Rukia sighed and smiled weakly at Senna, "it's a long story." Senna sat back and folded her hands in her lap.

"I've got time." Rukia smiled and proceeded to recall everything that had happened, starting from where she bumped into Momo to her sitting with Tatsuki and her strange friends. Once she was done Senna tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"Hmm. You'd better watch out for that Neiliel. She sounds like a real character, don't you think? So does that Ichigo person.. But I don't think he's as bad as you think he is." Rukia scowled.

"You're not the one he kept on calling a midget," she grumbled. Senna smiled at her friend and shook her head.

"Yeah, I know. But still, he was friends with that Tatsuki, right? And they were friends for a while. There must have been some reason they hang out for so long." Rukia shook her head.

"But they're not friends anymore," she pointed out, "So there must be a reason they aren't friends anymore, and my bet is that he had something to do with it." Senna shrugged.

"Yeah, but from what you told me, she still speaks highly of him, so even if he did do something, it must not have been that bad, right?" Rukia smiled and shook her head.

"Your power to try and see good in everyone amazes me sometimes, Senna." The two girls grinned at each other until a tiny tug on Rukia's jeans drew their attention to the little person before them. Hisana grinned now that she had their attention and held out her bunny to Rukia. She took the gift and looked it over, smiling. The bunny had been hers when she was born and named it Chappy. Chappy had been her best friend, helping her through stormy nights and comforting her when she cried. Once she grew too old for it she had passed it onto Hisana, who thankfully kept the name. Another tug on her jeans pulled Rukia out of her reverie and she turned once again to her little sister. Hisana grinned, then snatched the rabbit away and ran, giggling. Senna and Rukia laughed at the antics of the little girl, and Rukia stood and went after her, which made Hisana let out a shriek of delight.

* * *

"I'm home!" Ichigo Kurosaki called out, closing the door to his house behind him. Receiving a small greeting he headed into the kitchen to find the source of it. One of his younger sisters, Yuzu, stood at the counter, her pink apron tied around her neck and waist while her eyes scanned over the cookbook in her hands.

"Hey," Ichigo greeted. Yuzu turned to him and smiled, her eyes bright.

"Hey there Ichigo! How was school?" Yuzu was the older of Ichigo's little twin sisters, with short brown hair and sweet innocent matching eyes. She was fifteen, only a few minutes older than her sister, Karin. Ichigo shrugged in response to her question.

"Alright, I guess. Where's Karin and goat-face?" he asked as he opened the refrigerator and scanned the shelves for something to snack on.

"Dad's at a patient's house. Apparently they were to sick to come over here, so he went over there," Yuzu explained, and Ichigo shook his head. His dad was insane and completely idiotic, but he could be compassionate when he wanted to be.

"And Karin?" he asked, picking an apple from the fridge before closing the door and sitting at the table.

"Soccer practice. They have a big game tomorrow against a really competitive team, so her coach wanted them to have some extra practice." Ichigo was about to take a bite when suddenly the apple was snatched from his hand. He looked up in surprise until he saw Yuzu running the fruit under water from the sink. The boy smiled at his younger sister. She turned and handed the apple before sitting down across from him and settling her head on her palm.

"So," she said, "Tell me about your day." Ichigo smiled, observing the apple before looking up at his younger sister.

"It's a long story." Yuzu smiled back at him.

"I've got time."

**Well then :) So Rukia has a little sister and her parents are no longer alive. She goes to her babysitter to talk to about things, and Ichigo goes to his sister. I hope you liked it! Review please!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Here's another one! I'll try to update often, but I can't promise anything since school and stuff, so just bear with me! I have to say this isn't the greatest chapter ever (definitely not my favorite) but it will make since and get better, I promise! Well,**

**Enjoy!**

The next day Rukia woke up feeling excited. What was not to feel excited about? She would get to see her new friends again, maybe get to meet her ballet teacher, and fight with Ichigo again… Rukia shook her head as she sat up in bed. No, she didn't want to see that idiot again. He was just a jerk, and she wished he was out of her class… A disappointed feeling came with this thought, but she wiped it away and hurried to get ready. She dressed in regular jeans and a small red v-neck. She brushed her dark locks quickly before gathering her things.

Downstairs she could already hear her brother stirring, probably getting Hisana out of bed. Rukia took the stairs two at a time, smiling when she reached the bottom and looked out the window. It was still early and the air was fresh and clean. She walked into the kitchen to see Byakuya getting Hisana's food ready, who shuffled curiously around the kitchen. When Rukia entered the little girl smiled and held her arms out to her. Rukia smiled at her, lifting Hisana into her arms. The girl looked almost identical to Rukia, with the same raven hair and pretty indigo eyes. If it wasn't for the age difference someone could have been able to mistake them for twins.

"Morning," Hisana greeted loudly, and Rukia smiled.

"Morning, Hisana. Morning brother." Byakuya simply nodded in response and Rukia took time to take in both her sibling's appearances. Hisana's pretty hair was disheveled and tangled and she still wore her yellow pajamas, which made it obvious she had just woken up. Her brother, however, had his hair brushed neatly and was dressed in his normal business attire.

"Where's Queen Mean?" Rukia asked.

"Queen Mean! Queen Mean!" Hisana chirped. Rukia earned a warning glance from her brother. Ever since he and Suki had started dating, Rukia had come up with the secret nickname "Queen Mean", which wouldn't have been so bad if Hisana didn't repeat a lot of what she heard.

"She's still sleeping," Byakuya answered, and checked his watch, "I'll take you to school now and drop Hisana off at Senna's on the way back. I have a business meeting later, though, so you might have to walk home." Rukia nodded understandingly and Hisana clapped in delight. After helping Hisana get dressed and gather all her things together, the three siblings packed into the car. Rukia sat in the front this time, her brother driving and Hisana strapped into the car seat in the back. The car was silent other than the random humming and other noises that came from Hisana as they drove. Finally they reached the school and Byakuya pulled up to the curb, but Rukia didn't get out. Instead she turned and looked her brother directly in the eye.

"What's with you and Soi Fon?" she asked. Byakuya sighed, as if expecting this question.

"I have nothing to do with Soi Fon."

"My ballet teacher then?" Byakuya fell silent, and Rukia felt a spark of victory, "Do you know who she is." Her brother observed his watch and turned to her.

"You're going to be late." Rukia frowned and looked up at the school, now seeing kids running inside as the clock shown that there was only two minutes to get to class.

"Oh my-! Bye brother, bye bye Hisa!" she threw her goodbyes at them as she gathered her things and jumped out of the car. She slammed the door shut a little harder than meant to and started sprinting towards the school. Once she reached the doors she bolted inside and stopped. Where was her class again? Just then she spotted the girl from yesterday, Myoka. She ran up to her and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Hello new girl," Myoka greeted when she saw her, "Follow me." Rukia followed without protest and ended up in front of Mr. Urahara's class.

"Thanks again," she said, smiling at the girl. Myoka smiled back and shook her head.

"No problem, Rukia. It's my pleasure. After all, I feel this class is going to be very important to you." Before Rukia could ask what she meant, the girl was gone. She shook her head and entered the classroom, walking to her section. On her way she spotted Momo and waved. Momo grinned and waved back before turning back to her instrument. Once she reached her section Rukia noticed that her and Yumichika's name tags had been switched and smiled. She sat down and was starting to get her flute out of her back when suddenly a huge shadow was cast over her. She didn't even need to look up to know what it was.

"Kurosaki," she muttered, turning her head up to stare at the orange-haired boy's face.

"Kuchiki," he said, smirking, as if using her last name was an insult. Her eyes narrowed.

"Giant."

"Midget."

"Sasquatch."

"Frodo."

"Godzilla."

"Elf."

"Strawberry." The two continued to glare at each other though the insults had stopped. Yumichika was shaking his head at them while Momo was hiding a giggled behind her hand. Suddenly there was a low chuckle and everyone turned to Professor Urahara, who was smiling.

"Well then. I'm glad you two are having fun, but if you don't mind I'd like to teach my class now." Rukia blushed from embarrassment and sat down immediately, and Ichigo scowled before settling into his seat. Urahara smiled.

"Good. Now…" The class went on with only one interruption, which was when Rukia and Ichigo started yelling at each other about hitting the other with their instrument or something. They both were silenced and warned by Urahara that if they kept on doing that they'd start getting punished for it. At the end of class Rukia walked out with Momo, glaring at Kurosaki when he walked by, and then splitting to go to her next class. By lunch she was eager to get to her next class; ballet. She wanted to see what had gotten her brother so uneasy all of a sudden.

Looking around she saw Neiliel glaring at her from across the cafeteria. Rukia matched her glare, and she could see the other girl getting angry at being matched when she suddenly felt tap on her shoulder. She turned to see Momo and smiled.

"Hey," Rukia greeted. Her friend smiled.

"Hey. So where were you yesterday? I couldn't find you so I just sat a some table people I didn't know. They were creepy, too. They called themselves, 'The Espada', or something like that." Rukia smiled apologetically.

"Sorry, Momo. I couldn't find you either, and then I bumped into this rude girl, and another girl invited me to sit with her and her friends, so I did." Momo smiled.

"Well, do you think you could sit there again today? And would they mind if I came along, too?"

"I don't know, c'mon I'll go ask." Rukia approached the table she had sat at yesterday, which had all of the same people at it, and tapped on Tatsuki's shoulder.

"Hey, do you mind if we sit here? This is my friend Momo, by the way." Tatsuki smirked.

"Of course! Pop a squat! Sit here whenever, we're friends now, right?" Rukia smiled and agreed before sitting in between her and Momo. At first Momo seemed a little uneasy, but soon her and Kira hit it off and she was lost in their conversation, relaxed and happy.

Rukia smiled, glad that her friend was happy, before catching something from Tatsuki's conversation.

"…soccer game today?" Rukia turned to see that she was talking to Rangiku and Toshiro. Rangiku squealed and clapped while Toshiro shrugged.

"I wanna go!" she said, "I love cheering! And little kids are just so adorable!"

"I guess I will. I have nothing else to do, and I haven't seen a soccer game in a while." Tatsuki turned t o Rukia and saw her confused expression.

"We're just talking about my niece's soccer game today. I'm going to cheer her on but I didn't want to go alone, so Toshiro and Rangiku are coming," she explained, "Do you and Momo wanna come?" Rukia looked back at Momo, who nodded, and turned to Tatsuki with a smile.

"Sure, we'd love to!"

Rukia hurried to her next period, feeling the excitement building in her. She actually had plans with her friends after school on only the second day, and now in a few minutes she would get to find out what was able to make Byakuya fidget like a nervous schoolgirl. Upon entering the dance gym she set her bag against the wall with everyone else's stuff and sat on the ground with everyone else. After a few minutes the bell rang and Ms. Soi Fon approached them. Soi Fon was a skinny woman with blue hair that had two long braids going down her back and fierce brown eyes.

"Yesterday your teacher was not here because of a personal matter," she announced, getting straight to the point, "But today she is here. I would like you to meet your ballet teacher, Professor Yoruichi."

**Another cliffhanger! I told you there would be a lot of them ;) but don't worry, hopefully I won't keep you waiting for long! Questions for next time: Who is this Yoruichi, I wonder? What does she have to do with Rukia's brother? What will happen at the soccer game after school? Review and stuff por favor! :)**


	6. Chapter 6

Rukia's jaw dropped as the woman entered the room. She was gorgeous, with long silky purple hair tied into a ponytail, dark, smooth skin, and striking gold eyes. Professor Yoruichi strode over to them gracefully, a small, enchanting smile on her face.

"Nice to meet you, class," she greeted, her voice like velvet, but yet rough at the same time, "I'm Professor Yoruichi. From now on I'm going to be your ballet instructor, but also think of me as your friend. Come to me if you need anything, k?" Getting nods in response, Yoruichi's smile widened.

"Good. Now start stretching. I'll go put some music on, ok?" Everyone split up with their friends to start stretching while Soi Fon helped them and Yoruichi slunk over to the radio. Rukia looked around to make sure no one was near before she approached her dance instructor. Tapping on her shoulder, Rukia's breath caught as Yoruichi turned her mesmerizing eyes to her.

"Yes?" Yoruichi asked, looking slightly amused. It was then Rukia snapped back to reality and blushed.

"Erm, sorry, but I was wondering if I could ask you a question?" Yoruichi turned her whole body to her and nodded, giving her full attention.

"Shoot." Rukia took a deep breath.

"I was wondering if you knew my brother."

"And who might that be?"

"Byakuya Kuchiki." It was silent. Rukia examined Yoruichi's face as different emotions flitted over it. First surprise, then confused, then sad, and finally she covered her emotions so that her face was blank. Yoruichi gave a small smile.

"The name certainly sounds familiar," she said, "Maybe I do, but I can't remember from where." Rukia could tell she was lying, and she knew Yoruichi knew, but nodded anyways. She gave a small smile to Yoruichi before going off to stretch.

Next period came and Rukia walked slowly towards the general direction of her next class, her mind whirling. How did Yoruichi know her brother? What had all those emotions that appeared in her eyes the moment his name was brought up mean? What had happened between them that made them freeze up and not talk about it every time the other came up as a subject? Rukia was so deep in thought that she didn't realize the bell had rang before she looked up and saw she was alone in the hallway.

Cursing at herself under her breath, Rukia increased her pace towards her next class. She was now more aware of her surroundings, and could hear footsteps coming from the hallway ahead of her to the left. Swallowing, she slowed down. Leaning against the wall, Rukia tried to not make much noise. What if it was a teacher and she got in trouble? If they called Byakuya, she would be in for it big time. Her pulse increased as the footsteps got closer, and her heart felt like it would burst from anticipation.

Finally the person came around the corner, and Rukia let out a huge sigh of relief. There stood Ichigo, orange hair in all.

"Oi, midget, what do you look so happy about?" It was only then that Rukia realized he carried a girl in his arms, one with long grey hair and an ankle that looked badly bruised.

"What happened?" she asked. Ichigo looked down at the girl in surprise as if he had forgotten she was there. He turned back to Rukia, who had a worried look on her face, and shrugged.

"Just a badly strained ankle she got it in gym, and a small hit to the head. She'll be alright, just might have to be on crutches for little while and rest before she gets back to class." Rukia was surprised at his description.

"You seemed to know a lot about it," she told him, and he shrugged again.

"My family owns a clinic, and my dad's a doctor, so I learned a few stuff."

"Oh."

"So why are you out here? Class started a while ago."

"Huh?" Suddenly Rukia snapped back to present and her heart leaped.

"Oh no!" she exclaimed, pushing past Ichigo and the girl, "I gotta get to class!" As she started running down the hall she could have sworn she heard Ichigo mutter something like, "weird midget…" but didn't have time to turn around and retort before she was whipping around the corner towards her class.

Rukia finally made it to her class and got in trouble for being late, but school dragged on, and eventually the last bell rang. As she left the school Rukia spotted Tatsuki, Orihime, and Rangiku waiting in the front of the school.

"Hey," Tatsuki greeted with a smile when she reached them, "Looks like we're just waiting on Toshiro and Momo." After a while Momo came along, apologizing for taking so long before talking about something meaningless with Orihime and Rangiku while the other too stood to the side in silence. Finally Torshiro appeared, hands deep in his pockets and a bored look on his face.

"Alright well let's get going," Tatsuki said, "Do you wanna take my car and can just drop you guys back here after?" Everyone but Rukia agreed.

"Actually I told my brother about it and he's just going to come pick me up from the soccer game," she informed them.

"Well alright. Let's get going then!" They all piled into Tatsuki's car, Tatsuki driving with Rangiku in the passenger's seat and Rukia in between Orihime (who had Momo sitting in her lap) and Toshiro. Rangiku, Orihime, and Momo chatted the whole time about random things, while the others remained silent. Tatsuki focused on the road while Rukia sat deep in thought and Toshiro stared out the window.

After a while they arrived at their destination, a small grassy soccer field with metal bleachers. Some people were scattered around, sitting in the bleachers chatting or looking for somewhere to sit. The group sat near the top and Tatsuki pointed out her niece, a tall girl with long black hair and wearing a blue uniform. Apparently her name was Livy, and she waved when she spotted them looking at her.

Rukia took the time the players used to warm up to look around. The sun was high in the sky, and she noticed people fanning themselves or hiding from the heat under umbrellas. Small kids around Hisana's age, probably younger siblings of the players, ran around exploring and playing their own games. The other team was wearing red, and all the girls looked around fifteen years old.

"She looks so good, Tatsuki," Orihime commented. Tatsuki smiled and puffed out her chest a little in pride.

"Yeah. She's a forward. I taught her a lot of what she knows." The six quieted as the game started. Indeed Livy was a forward. She stood at the middle line next to another forward and across from a girl on the other team. This girl was shorter, with short black hair and a boyish face. Rukia saw her grin once the ball was kicked, and then she was gone. Immediately the girl from the other team had the ball, curving around players and heading quickly for the goal.

Rukia was amazed at her speed, and she wasn't the only one.

"Wow, look at that boy! He's so fast…"

"That's a girl, Orihime."

"… Look at that girl, she's so fast…"

Everyone stared in awe as the girl gave a powerful kick to the ball, which evaded the goalie and slammed into the top left corner of the goal. As people from the other team cheered, Rukia heard a deep voice yelling that she swore she recognized. Not being able to place it, she shook it out of her head and turned back to the game. It went on, and again the other team scored. Rukia looked over at her friends to see their expressions. Tatsuki looked thoughtful, her eyes carefully watching the field as if figuring out a strategy for her niece to win.

Orihime and Rangiku were talking animatedly about strange-sounding recipes, with Momo adding in once in a while. Finally, to Rukia's left, Toshiro looked completely captivated. Rukia frowned and turned to see what he was looking at. His eye followed the girl playing forward for the other team. His eyes wouldn't tear away from her. It seemed that Rukia wasn't the only one that noticed. Rangiku called out to him and Toshiro finally turned from the field to see all five girls looking at him. He blinked.

"Is that girl really that interesting to you?" Rangiku said, a mischievous hint in her voice. Toshiro glanced back at the girl before rolling his eyes and crossing his arms defensively.

"No. I was just studying her technique. I use to play soccer, and I wanted to see if I knew all the moves she did." Rangiku smiled, and Rukia had a bad feeling.

"I'm sure there are a lot more moves she could show you, right, Toshi?" Rukia's jaw dropped while Orihime squealed and Momo's mouth turned into a perfect o. Tatsuki shook her head at her friend's implication while Toshiro turned red and rolled his eyes, looking away. Rangiku giggled at his expense before launching into another discussion with Orihime, making it silent and peaceful once again.

By the time the game was done Livy's team had lost five to three. They went down to meet her and saw the girl from the other team pass. Rukia looked at Toshiro and saw him watching her once again.

"Hey," Livy called out. The girl stopped and turned to her, a bored expression on her face. Now that she was closer Rukia now saw that she had hard black eyes and wore no make-up. Livy held a hand out to her.

"Good game. I'm Livy Arasawa." Karin took her hand and shook it, a ghost of a smile splayed on her lips.

"Karin. Karin Kurosaki."


	7. Chapter 7

**Hola! Sorry for the late updates. School, ya know? Anyways, I hope you like it! Give any suggestions, like characters or couples you want in here... I'm open to a lot of things. So yeah... here ya go :)**

"Karin? Is that really you?" The young girl turned to Tatsuki and grinned.

"Hey," Karin greeted, "Haven't seen you in a while."

"Yeah, I didn't recognize you at first," she said with a smile, "How ya doin?" Karin shrugged.

"Alright I guess." Just then a man's voice called her named. Karin turned back to Tatsuki and smiled.

"Well, I gotta go. See ya later!" she waved and eyed Rukia before glancing at Toshiro and running away. Once she disappeared through the crowd everyone turned to Tatsuki.

"You know that girl?" Rangiku asked.

"And didn't she say her last name was Kurosaki?" Momo added. Tatsuki shrugged.

"Yeah, she's Ichigo's little sister. When we were friends her and her twin Yuzu used to hang around us all the time. It's been a while, no wonder I didn't recognize her." Rangiku let out a disappointed sigh.

"Too bad Toshiro. Ichigo would probably kill you if you even talked to one of his little sisters. And you two would have looked so cute together…" The girls giggled at Toshiro's expense as he rolled his eyes and looked away. Soon the crowd faded, and Rukia spotted her brother near the opposite end of the field.

"Well," she said, interrupting the conversation Orihime and Rangiku were having about the use of bean paste, "My brother's here, so I've gotta go. See you tomorrow." They all said their goodbyes and Rukia split off to go join her brother.

"Hello brother," she said as they started walking towards the curb where the Cadillac was parked, "Where's Hisana and Queen Mean?" Byakuya sighed.

"Hisana is still over at Senna's hows, and Suki is out to lunch with friends. And I really wish you would stop calling her that, it's quite obnoxious." Rukia simply shrugged in response, then smirked mischievously.

"So I met my ballet teacher today," she said innocently, watching as Byakuya's eyes flashed with an emotion she didn't recognize. He remained silent, so she went on.

"Her name is Yoruichi. She's really pretty, you know?" Rukia watched as Byakuya tried hard to cover up his emotions.

"I mentioned you," she said, and almost laughed out loud at how much strain Byakuya was putting out to try and hold his emotions inside, "She said your name sounded familiar but she couldn't remember where from. Would you know?" Byakuya's icy façade was breaking inch by inch, and Rukia almost felt bad in torturing her brother like this.

"I," Byakuya started, before clearing his throat and speaking again, "I don't know. Maybe we met each other on business once or something." Rukia sighed. They had reached the car and Byakuya immediately got in, barely giving his sister enough time to climb in and shut the door before peeling away.

"You hiding things from me is really getting on my nerves," she stated, "Why can't you just tell me what's up between you and Yoruichi?" Byakuya sighed and shook his head.

"Ask her if you want to, but it's not something I would like to discuss with my little sister."

"Aha! So you admit you know Yoruichi! Did you two have a thing or something? Where did you meet?" Byakuya stayed silent, taking a deep breath before answering.

"As I said before, you would have to talk to her about it, although she might not remember." Rukia could detect sadness in her brother's voice at his last few words and suddenly felt bad.

"You know," she said in a softer voice, "She said that, but I don't think she meant it. She tried to cover up that she knew you like you did, but I think she did." Byakuya didn't answer, and it was silent all the way home.

* * *

Ichigo raised an eyebrow at his sister. Karin, the tomboy one of the pair, sat at the kitchen table just staring at her untouched food, seemingly deep in thought.

"What's with you?" he asked. Karin was usually the first one to dig into a meal, especially after a soccer game.

"Yeah Karin, aren't you hungry after all that running?" Yuzu asked concernedly. The black haired sibling simply shrugged.

"Well you won, so you should at least be happy about that," Ichigo told her. The three sat at the table, though the head chair and the one next to it was empty. Their father was working at the clinic at the moment, and their mother had passed away when Ichigo was nine, the girls even younger than that.

"I am," Karin mumbled, "I'm just not that hungry." Yuzu frowned.

"Well you don't sound it. Why don't you at least eat some of it so you're not hungry later," she suggested. Karin sighed and started shoveling food lazily into her mouth. Ichigo shook his head; he would never understand his sisters.

The next day at school Ichigo walked into his first class smiling. He didn't know what it was, but something about that girl Rukia made it actually fun to argue with her. He spotted her at her seat, studying her flute.

"Oi midget," he said. Rukia sighed in annoyance and glared up at him.

"What is it, Strawberry?"

"Don't focus so hard. You'll get wrinkles." Rukia snarled up at him as smirked.

"Look, _Strawberry_, you may get off on teasing small helpless kids but I came here to listen to Urahara talk about music not to listen to you with your stupid insults."

"So you're small and helpless?" Rukia groaned and stood up, glaring at him. This didn't do much since she only came up to about his chest.

"Do you ever shut up, Kurosaki?" Suddenly a small foot came out and nailed him in the shin. Surprisingly, even someone as small as Rukia could make a kick hurt. And it hurt a lot.

"Ow! Why you little-" As always they were interrupted by Urahara and sat down. The whole time, though, Ichigo couldn't keep his mind off of the small girl behind him.

At lunch Ichigo walked to his usual table. There sat his best friend, a red haired guy with a lot of tattoos named Renji, and some of his other friends.

"Hey," he greeted as he sat down, getting the same thing in response.

"Yo Kurosaki," Grimmjow, one of Ichigo's least favorite guys, called. Grimmjow Jaggerjaques had electric blue hair, green eyes, and was quite the ladies man. He often got in trouble for skipping or getting into fights with people for no reason.

"What is it, Grimmjow?" Ichigo asked tiredly, not in the mood to deal with this guy.

"Yeah, I get it, you don't like me. Wah, good for you. But I heard something and I thought you should hear it," Grimmjow stated. Ichigo leaned in, as did most of the people at the table.

"Alright then, what is it?" he asked. Grimmjow smirked.

"One of my buddies was at your little sis's game yesterday and they said they saw that runt Toshiro Hitsugaya checking her out." Ichigo looked back at the table the kid, Hitsugaya, usually sat at and saw him sitting at the end of the table, looking annoyed and bored as the busty woman next to him laughed and moved around. He could see that the woman's obnoxious movements were close to knocking Hitsugaya out of his seat. As far as Ichigo knew, Hitsugaya was just some smart kid that never took interest in anything.

"Are you sure?" he asked, turning back to Grimmjow. He nodded.

"Definitely. Said he didn't keep his eyes off her the entire time. I just thought you'd want to know in case he made a move on her or something." Ichigo might not have liked Grimmjow, but that guy could be good if he wanted to. Ichigo nodded.

"So what are you gonna do?" Renji asked. Ichigo sighed and shrugged.

"Nothing for now. I mean, I'm not gonna go beat up the kid or anything. If he tries anything, then we'll have a problem, but as far as I know my sister doesn't even know him," he answered truthfully. Renji shrugged and they lapsed into silence until Grimmjow and his some of his friends started a really perverted conversation that Ichigo chose to ignore. At the end of the day Ichigo walked outside, starting to walk home like he usually does, when suddenly a small body crashed into his.

The other person was sent to the ground and cried out in pain upon impact. The tall teen looked down at the person in surprise. The raven haired girl clutched her ankle in pain, and it only took Ichigo a moment to realize who it was.

"Kuchiki?"

**See? I like cliffys :) Anyways, just tell me who you want and stuff and I'll try to fit them in, k? And I'll try to get these done faster :) See ya!**


	8. Chapter 8

Rukia glared up at the tall teenager above her, clutching her aching ankle.

"You idiot, watch where you're going next time!" Ichigo was about to retort, but her ankle caught his eye and he frowned.

"Are you alright?" he asks, reaching out a hand to help her up. Rukia pushed it away and started to get up.

"I'm fine," she huffed once she was up, putting all her weight on the uninjured leg, "If you had just been watching where you were going-" Rukia gave out a cry of pain and started to fall after putting some weight on her other leg. Ichigo caught her, holding her steady.

"Thanks," she mumbled, but he didn't let her go.

"You should get that fixed," he told her. She sighed.

"No, I'll be fine. Besides, my brother is too busy to pick me up, so I'll just walk home and ask my babysitter to fix it." Ichigo rolled his eyes.

"Walk home on that leg? What, are you gonna hop all the way? And did I hear you have a babysitter?" Rukia pulled away from his grasp, and after taking a moment to steady herself, glared at him.

"It's my baby sister's babysitter," she snarled, "And I can hop home all I want. It's not like-hey! Put me down!" Ichigo had picked her up and thrown her over his shoulder, and started walking down the street the way he had originally been going.

"You can't do this! Let me down, Strawberry!" Ichigo smirked at her tiny fists pounded at his back in protest, barely having any effect.

"No way, midget," he called back. After a while she stopped struggling and it was quiet.

"Will you put me down now?" she asked finally. Ichigo thought about it.

"Will you try to hop away?" A sigh.

"No." Ichigo shrugged and put her down, watching as she straightened herself before glaring up at him. He motioned his head to the street.

"C'mon." Rukia tried to walk on her hurt ankle but stumbled. Ichigo caught her and convinced her to let him at least help her there.

So they slowly progressed down the street, Rukia limping along as she held onto Ichigo's arm. He could tell she was trying not to show how much pain she was in, but the nails digging into his skin every time she took a step on her bad leg gave her away. Eventually they made it to the small clinic a few blocks from the school and Ichigo brought her inside.

"Wait here," he said after she sat on one of the beds, and Rukia nodded. Ichigo walked out of the clinic and next door to his house. The moment he stepped in he could hear sounds of Yuzu in the kitchen and saw Karin sitting on the couch flipping through different channels.

"Hey," he spoke to Karin, "Where's dad?" Karin shrugged, and Yuzu called from the kitchen.

"He's at that lady's house again," she called, "The patient got worse so he needed to check on them again." Ichigo sighed, agitated.

"This sucks," he muttered. He saw Karin shrug her shoulders again.

"Hey, at least you don't have to have extra practice with some older kid you don't know," she told him. Ichigo raised an eyebrow.

"What are you babbling about, Karin?" Karin rolled her eyes.

"Dad wants me to be some soccer star, so he's looking for someone older that can teach me even more moves than I already know." Ichigo sighed, and then suddenly remembered what Grimmjow said at lunch.

"Er, Karin?" Her eyes slid to him briefly before flitting back to the television.

"What?"

"Do you know anyone named Toshiro Hitsugaya?" Karin paused for a moment, thinking, and finally shrugged.

"I don't think so. The name sounds familiar but I'm pretty sure I've never met him. Why?" Ichigo shrugged, trying to be nonchalant.

"No reason." Karin raised an eyebrow at him as if she knew he was lying, but didn't say anything more. Ichigo sighed in relief before suddenly remembering the small injured person he had in the clinic. He walked out and went back into the clinic to see Rukia sitting in the same place she had been.

"Well you sure took your time," she muttered, crossing her arms. Ichigo rolled his eyes, walking to the supply closet and picking out a couple things. Rukia watched as he set the things next to her and pick up some bandages.

"My dad's not here," he said, "So I'll just wrap up your foot and you can get the hell out of here." Rukia huffed.

"Fine, whatever." Ichigo took her foot in his hands, and she was surprised at how gentle he was being, and examined it. His rough hands on just the small bit of bare skin on her ankle made her blush and sent shivers up her spine.

"So why were you walking home anyways?" Rukia asked to distract herself, "Don't you have a car? Or doesn't your mom or dad take you?" It was silent for a moment before Ichigo answered.

"My family doesn't have enough money to buy me a car for myself, and my dad is usually using the car to go to patient's houses, so I just walk."

"What about your mom?" Ichigo's hands froze in their tracks. His head was bent, so Rukia could see his face.

"Ichigo…?" she called out tentatively.

"My mom's dead." Rukia felt her heart twist. Ichigo remained still, and Rukia couldn't think of anything to say. After a moment his hands started working again.

"I'm sorry," Rukia mumbled quietly. His hands paused a moment before continuing.

"It's fine." Ichigo tied off the bandage and cut the extra part off.

"What about your sisters?" she went on, hoping to overcome the sadness that had settled over the room.

"Karin takes her bike and I walk with Yuzu to and from school," he said, clipping pins in her bandage to help keep it up, "Now my turn. Why don't you have a car? Why does your brother pick you up?" Rukia sighed.

"I got in a crash once with my old car, and my brother, being the overprotective sibling he is, didn't want me to drive at all anymore. Of course I didn't want that, so we made a deal. He would take me to school and pick me up, or I would get a ride from someone else, and he lets me borrow his car sometimes when I can't get a ride somewhere I want to go." Ichigo raised an eyebrow.

"That's weird. So why does he make the decisions for you? Where are your parents?" Rukia sighed and looked down at her hands resting in her lap.

"My mother died giving birth to my younger sister, and my dad died a while after that." She felt tears spring up in her eyes, but pushed them back. Glancing back up at Ichigo, she saw his amber eyes looking at her softly, something she would never have expected to see from him. Suddenly she felt strong arms envelope her, and her body pressed against a rock hard chest. Her eyes widened in surprise, and her pulse increased at his touch.

"I'm sorry," Ichigo murmured. Rukia was stiff at first, but then relaxed into his embrace. Her small, fragile body encased in his seemed to fit perfectly, and her scent entranced him. After a moment he let go of her. They looked at each other, and a blush spread across Ichigo's cheeks as he looked away. Rukia smiled a little at his embarrassment.

"I should go home now," she said. Suddenly Ichigo snapped back to the present and nodded.

"All you need to do is rest it a while when you get home. Put some ice on it and try not to walk on it. It wasn't that bad, so it should be fine tomorrow." Rukia nodded and started to slowly lift herself off the bed, Ichigo holding her elbow lightly for support. He walked with her to the door and outside into the sunlight.

"How're you going to get home?" Ichigo said, "You're not walking." Rukia dug into her backpack and pulled out her phone.

"My babysitter should be home with Hisana by now," she said, dialing a number and holding it to her ear, "She can probably pick me up." The phone rang twice before Senna's voice crackled through.

_"Hello?"_

"Hey Senna. Are you with Hisana?"

_"Yeah, I brought her back to your house about twenty minutes ago. Why? Where are you?"_

"Well I had a little accident and a friend took me to the clinic. Byakuya's busy and I can't walk on my right foot, so I was wondering if you could pick me up?"

_"Of course! Just tell me where you are and me and Hisana will be right over." _The minutes in which they were waiting was silent. Ichigo smiled at the fact that Rukia had called him a friend instead of just someone. Soon Senna pulled up in her car, Hisana in the backseat. Rukia waved and Ichigo helped her to the car. She turned to him and smiled.

"Thanks for everything," she said, "You're not that bad, Strawberry." Ichigo smirked.

"Ditto, midget." Rukia rolled her eyes and climbed into the front seat. As Senna pulled away Ichigo waved, that arrogant smirk still on his face. Rukia flipped him off, which just made him laugh, and soon they were gone from each other's view.

"So," Senna started, smiling, "You and Strawberry, huh?" Rukia laughed.


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey! Sorry if this is a little late, I've been busy. And this chapter is really short, sorry. Writer's block :/ So any suggestions would be helpful! I tried to put in more ToshiroxKarin, since that seems to be popular, so tell me if you like it :) I'll be getting to more couples in the next chapter, and hopefully more IchiRukia :D Enjoy!**

Rukia walked into school the next day and met Momo by the pillar they had met Myoka at the first day of school. This was starting to become a habit of theirs, and Rukia spotted Momo already waiting there.

"Hey," she greeted. Momo turned and her eyes lit up, a grin spreading across her face.

"Hey Rukia!" Rukia raised an eyebrow at her friend.

"What are you so excited about?" Momo shrugged, still smiling.

"You know Toshiro, right?" Rukia nodded.

"Well, I think he's cute. Don't you? I was thinking of asking him out." Rukia shrugged.

"I guess you should if you want to, but don't be disappointed if he says no. And isn't he into Ichigo's little sister or something?" Momo rolled her eyes.

"C'mon, that was just a rumor Rangiku started. She's always starting stuff like that. Besides, as far as I know they've never even talked before." Rukia shrugged as they started walking to class.

"Then go for it."

* * *

Toshiro sighed. He stood on the soccer field, waiting for his new student. The other day he was practicing alone on the field with his old soccer ball when suddenly a car parked on the curb beside him and a man came up to him and asked if he would teach his daughter. Toshiro didn't know how he was convinced into actually doing it, but the guy was pretty strange, and somehow he was now suffering under the heat waiting for the man's daughter.

Just then the same car from yesterday pulled up on the side of the curb and the passenger's side door opened. Toshiro felt a leap of surprise when he saw the same girl from the soccer game walk towards him lazily, ball in hand, as the car drove away. Once she reached him he saw that her boyish looks were actually quite pretty upon a closer look.

"Hey," she greeted nonchalantly, "Karin Kurosaki."

"Toshiro Hitsugaya." The girl observed him for a second before dropping her soccer ball and placed her foot on it.

"So how did my dad rope you into doing this anyway?" she asked, her eyebrow raised. Toshiro matched her expression.

"I could ask you the same thing," he said, "You don't seem like the type of person who would willingly be trained by a stranger." Karin sighed and shrugged.

"I dunno, my dad's a psycho. He can convince almost anyone to do anything he wants them to. So anyways, are we gonna start practicing or just talk about meaningless crap the whole time?" Toshiro smirked, something he didn't do often, and nodded.

"Alright then, let's get started."

* * *

Near the end of their training both were tired and sweating. They had gone through different drills and techniques, going one on one and also practicing together. By then the sun was setting, and the two had retired to the bleachers to rest and take a drink of water.

"You're pretty good," Toshiro complimented, "How long have you been playing?" Karin shrugged.

"Since I was about nine, I guess. I like a lot of sports, but I guess soccer is the one that really caught on. So what about you? You don't seem too bad yourself."

"Played for about five years, since I was 10. Then I guess I got bored and quit." Karin raised an eyebrow.

"Nothing keeps your interest for long, does it?" Toshiro shrugged and looked at her.

"Not much, but there is one thing that I think will last for a long time."

"And what's that?" Toshiro didn't answer, instead just continued to stare at her. Then they were leaning in, so close Karin could feel his breath fan her face, and suddenly a loud car horn ripped through the air, causing them to jump apart. Toshiro looked across the field to see the same car parked by the curb, but instead of Karin's dad, Ichigo was at the wheel. Ichigo honked again, and Karin sighed, rolling her eyes. She stood and turned to Toshiro.

"Well thanks," she said, "I guess I'll see you next time?" Toshiro nodded, and she started walking across the field. When she reached the car Karin turned and waved one last time to the white haired before turning and slipping into the car. Ichigo nodded to Toshiro, who nodded back, before pulling away and disappearing around the corner.

"So how was it?" Ichigo asked his little sister as they drove away. Karin simply shrugged in response and didn't elaborate. She suspected Ichigo had interrupted on purpose from seeing how close they were getting, and she didn't want her big brother scaring Toshiro away. The boy was… interesting.

"Did you hear about the party?" Rangiku squealed. She, Rukia, Orihime, Tatsuki, Senna, and Momo all sat in Rukia's room talking. Hisana had long since gone to sleep, and so had Byakuya and Suki since Byakuya had a business meeting in the morning.

"Yeah, I heard it was at that little girl's house," Momo cut in, "You know, the rich blonde one?" Tatsuki nodded.

"Apparently Grimmjow and his gang are going," she told them, "I heard him talking about it to his buddies at lunch."

"When is it?" Orihime asked.

"Tomorrow at like eight something," Rangiku said, waving her hand dismissively, "Who cares about the details? It will give us an excuse to be fashionably late, anyways."

"You're going, right, Rukia?" Senna asked. Everyone turned to the raven haired girl. She sighed and ran a hand through her hair.

"I don't know if I'll be able to," she said honestly, "I'll need a ride."

"Oh, I can give you one!" Orihime exclaimed, "My brother is taking me, and he said he would be happy to pick up any of my friends if I wanted him to." Rukia sighed.

"Ok, well I'll see what I can do." Rangiku squealed.

"Oh, this is gonna be so much fun!"


	10. Chapter 10 part 1

**I'm baaaaack! This one may be a little longer than the others, but it's because I love you :) Some of the chapters may be longer or shorter than the others, but that's because I don't want to have, like, a bajillion chapters because there's a lot going on and the chapters are short. So read, and enjoy!**

The music coming from the house could be heard almost a mile away, and cars were already lined up outside. Rukia sat nervously in the front seat next to Orihime, who babbled on and on. Finally she stopped, noticing her friend's silence.

"Are you okay, Rukia?" she asked worriedly. Rukia shrugged and smiled, trying to cover up how nervous she was.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just don't go to parties that often… I'm surprised my brother let me come here." Orihime smiled understandingly.

"I know what you mean. My brother doesn't let me come a lot, either. I didn't know he would let me drive his car. I used to not go to parties at all before I met Rangiku. She dragged me to so many of them that I just got used to it." Rukia sighed again before opening her door and climbing out of the car. Orihime followed her towards the house, locking the car behind her. Once they got in side they had to be careful not to lose each other in the crowd.

Rukia recognized some of the people that went to her school, but most were complete strangers. The two girls walked into the living room and spotted Rangiku sitting on the couch, holding a beer while surrounded by guys. Her loud, obnoxious laughs could be heard over the music.

"She certainly gets a lot of attention," a voice came from behind them. Rukia and Orihime turned to see Tastuki standing there, watching Rangiku with an eyebrow raised. Orihime giggled and Rukia shrugged.

"What do you expect?" she said, "Most of them are guys."

"Except for Chizuru, of course," Tatsuki replied. Just then Momo appeared beside them.

"Hey, have you guys seen Toshiro?" she asks. Everyone shook their heads.

"Last time I heard he was disappeared shortly after him and Rangiku got here," Tatsuki informed her, "Why do you need him?"

"She wants to ask him out," Rukia answered for her friend, smirking. Momo blushed slightly and scowled.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm gonna go find him, ok? See ya." Soon Momo was gone, and Orihime went off somewhere so just Rukia and Tatsuki were left alone.

"What now?" Rukia asked, and Tatsuki shrugged before someone was suddenly shoved into her and she fell to the ground. The now angry and confused tomboy opened her eyes to find herself pinned under the body of a boy with strange tattoos and fiery red hair.

* * *

Orihime sighed. She had left her friends in an effort to find somewhere quieter where she could sit and be alone. Rangiku _did_ drag her to a lot of parties, but that didn't mean she liked them anymore than she had before. The strawberry blonde climbed the stairs, passing other kids who gave her weird looks or totally ignored her and made it to the second floor. The hallways were filled, and a few of the doors she opened were, well, occupied.

After blushing and apologizing before closing the door and feeling like a total idiot, Orihime sighed and simply sat on the floor in the hallway. A few people past her, glancing at her and mumbling, but she tried to ignore them. Just when she was thinking about going back downstairs to find Rukia, a cold, unfeeling voice that sent shivers up and down her spine reached her ears.

"Are you alright?" Orihime looked up at the person who spoke. It was a boy around her age with dark black hair, striking green eyes, and paint that made it look like he was crying. Orihime opened her mouth, but couldn't force anything out. The boy's presence was heavy, and she felt as if a huge pressure was building on her chest and weighing her down.

"Well?" he said, "Are you going to answer or continue to gape like a fish?" Suddenly Orihime snapped back to her senses and blushed.

"I-I'm sorry," she mumbled, "I just…" The boy continued to watch her, waiting for an answer, and finally she sighed.

"I'm alright," Orihime assured him, "I just wanted to get away from all the people." The boy nodded.

"I'm Orihime, by the way," she went on, "Who are you?"

"Ulqiorra."

"Nice to meet you."

"….."

"…"

Orihime shifted uncomfortably at the silence. She was trying to think of something to say when suddenly Ulquiorra spoke.

"I have to go," he said, "Good bye, Orihime."

"Er, good bye, Ulquiorra." He walked away, and Orihime watched him, wondering what the secrets were the boy held.

* * *

Toshiro sighed, looking up at the sky. It was dark already, and music still blared from the house, shouts and cheers coming from the inside. The moment they arrived, Rangiku had been swarmed by guys, and Toshiro had been able to escape out the back door. Now he stood, staring up at the starry sky and crescent moon. He heard footsteps to his left and turned, bracing himself to deal with one of the drunken guys that had stumbled out to throw up. Instead he saw Karin, walking slowly while kicking a pebble.

She felt another presence and looked up, surprised to see the white haired boy from her soccer practice. Her mind flashed back to then, when they had been so close, and felt her face heat up. Karin was lucky it was dark; if anyone found out Karin Kurosaki had blushed because of an almost-kiss, or had blushed at all for that matter, her reputation would be shot.

"Hey," she greeted, walking to stand by him, "What're you doing out here?" Toshiro shrugged, looking back up at the sky.

"Just wanted to get away from the people. You?" Karin sighed.

"Same. My stupid dad said he had "stuff" to do tonight, so he made me and my sister Yuzu come with Ichigo," she explained.

"So where's your sister?" Toshiro asked, wondering if a girl her age should be wondering around a house alone with a lot of older people. Karin must have read his expression, because she shook her head and said, "Don't worry, she's with my brother. We were told to stay together, but Ichigo let me come outside as long as I "didn't talk to strangers" and crap like that." Toshiro nodded understandingly.

"I don't know your brother well," he said, "but I see him at school sometime. He's kind of a punk, but he seems like a good guy." Karin chuckled, the closest sound she had ever gotten to giggling.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. So did you come here with anyone?" she asked slyly, wondering why she cared. Toshiro sighed.

"Yeah, my friend Rangiku. She got surrounded by guys the moment we stepped in, so I got to sneak away out here," he told her, asking himself in his mind why he was talking so much, "Her other friends were supposed to meet us here, but I haven't seen them."

"Oh." It was silent as they both stared up at the sky. Surprisingly it was a comfortable, companionable silence, one you wouldn't have expected to have settled over a boy and a girl who barely knew each other. The night air was cool, and a light wind blew around them. If it hadn't been for the blaring music behind them, it would have been one of the most peaceful nights she had experienced in a long time, and Karin let a small, rare smile spread on her face.

* * *

Back inside, Tatsuki was furious.

"Get off me, you idiot!" she shouted at the boy lying on top of her, shoving at him. The guy jumped up, and Tatsuki followed immediately after.

"You idiot, watch where you're going next time!" she shouted. Rukia was starting to get worried Tatsuki might actually murder someone when she suddenly recognized someone standing closely behind the guy that had knocked over Tatsuki.

"Ichigo?" The strawberry turned, and once his eyes landed on her they lit up in recognition.

"Rukia? What are you doing here?" Just then the red head decided to retort to Tatsuki.

"Yeah, well move out of the way next time," he growled. Tatsuki glared at him, and Rukia felt as if the floor was going to open up and swallow the guy right then and there.

"I shouldn't have to, you damn idiot! If you weren't being a total asshole and messing around this never would have happened!" Rukia gave Ichigo a warning look as his friend started to open his mouth to continue the fight, and he nodded.

"C'mon, Renji," he said, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder to restrain him, "Cut it out."

"Yeah, Tatsuki," Rukia said, tugging on the angry girl's arm, "Let's just go see if we can find Momo or Orihime, ok? I haven't seen them in a while and I'm starting to get worried." The two friends reluctantly obeyed and backed off. Ichigo and Rukia exchanged a nod before he dragged Renji away into the crowd.

"Who does he think he is?" Tatsuki mumbled, crossing her arms, "Stupid pineapple head… who has that kind of hair color, anyways?" Rukia would have rolled her eyes at her friend's antics if she had been listening, but her mind was too busy working. So what did this mean for her and Ichigo? Were they friends now? They still fought when they saw each other in school, but it was more playful than before. So were they friends, or maybe something more?

* * *

Momo sat on the edge of one of the couches, holding her head in her hands and feeling dejected. On her search for Toshiro she had finally found him outside, staring up at the sky. She started to approach him when suddenly there were other footsteps, and both she and Toshiro turned to see the girl from the soccer game, Karin Kurosaki. The two started talking, and Momo automatically knew that any chance she had with Toshiro was shot.

Momo sighed, thinking. Now what was she supposed to do? When she had gone back into the house, feeling down about Toshiro, she couldn't find her friends anywhere, so she just took the free spot on one of the small couches in the living room. Suddenly the couch beneath her shifted and she turned to see Kira sitting next to her.

"Kira?" she said, blinking in surprise, "What are you doing here?" Kira turned to her.

"Hey Momo," he greeted, "I came here for the party, what else?"

"I don't know, this just doesn't seem like you're type of thing." Kira observed her.

"What's wrong? You're usually a lot more happy than this." Momo shrugged and went back to holding her head in her hands.

"Nothing. Just this guy I like is into someone else…"

"Well, if he doesn't like you, then he's an idiot." Momo turned to Kira in surprise and saw a light blush had crept across his cheeks. She smiled and gave him a quick peck on the cheek, making his face redden.

"Thanks, Kira," she said, her smile widening. Kira gave her a small, shy smile back.

**The end :) I know it's kind of an odd place to leave off, but I'ma tired and have other stuffs to do. Anyways, review and give me suggestions and stuff :)**


	11. Chapter 10 part 2

**Whew! Hey there again. Sorry for such a late update, I had some things to do and had a bad case of writer's block. This one's a little long, but I really wanted it to get written and updated, so I hope you like it! Please feel free to give me suggestions and stuff, they'd be greatly appreciated! Anyways,**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Ichigo sighed, running a hand through his wild hair agitatedly. After they had bumped into Rukia and Tatsuki, Ichigo had dragged his complaining friend away to one of the couches that was empty. Now he sat beside Renji, pretending to listen to him yell over the music about "that damn he-she", as he put it. Ichigo looked around and suddenly noticed something and felt his heart leap.

"Where's Yuzu?" he shouted, sitting up straight. Renji halted mid sentence and looked around. Neither of them spotting the young girl, Ichigo jumped up from the couch and started pushing his way through the crowd, calling out his little sister's name. Worry came in waves through him. _Yuzu, where are you?_

* * *

Rukia looked around and noticed it was starting to get pretty late. Some people were leaving, others were just arriving. She stood next to Tatsuki in one of the hallways, pretending to listen to her rant on about the 'idiot pineapple head'. Just then she spotted a small girl through the crowd that looked to be around fourteen or fifteen. She had short blonde hair and large brown eyes, and from their expression Rukia could tell the girl was lost.

"Hold on a sec, ok?" Rukia interrupted. Tatsuki blinked in surprise and nodded. Rukia pushed off the wall and approached the girl. When she got closer she noticed they were almost the same size, and face palmed in her mind.

"Hey there," she greeted nicely. The girl turned her scared eyes to her.

"H-Hello," she answered in a small voice, giving her a shy smile. Rukia smiled back.

"Are you lost?" she asked, "You look a little young to be wandering around a party like this all on your own."

"Well, I was with my brother and his friend, but we got separated in the crowd," the girl replied. My sister Karin is also here, but she went off somewhere and I haven't been able to find her." Rukia opened her mouth to respond, and then closed it with a frown. Her sister was Karin? She had come here with her brother and his friend? It suddenly clicked and her eyes widened.

"You're Ichigo Kurosaki's little sister, aren't you?" The girl looked at her in surprise.

"Yeah, I'm Yuzu Kurosaki. Do you know my brother?"

"Yes, he goes to my school. I'm Rukia Kuchiki, by the way," Rukia responded. Yuzu smiled in relief.

"So are you a friend of my brothers then?" Rukia shifted uncomfortably.

"Well, I guess you could say that. So what do you say I help you find him?" Yuzu smiled widely and nodded, and Rukia grinned back before leading the girl back over to Tatsuki to explain the situation.

* * *

The moment Karin and Toshiro stepped back inside the house, she could hear the distinct voice of her brother calling out for Yuzu.

"Oh no, what'd the idiot do now?" Karin muttered, loud enough that only she and Toshiro could hear her over the music. She pushed through the crowd toward Ichigo's voice, Toshiro close behind her. When they reached him Karin tapped on his should and he whipped around.

"What did you do?" she demanded, placing her hands on her hips, "Where's Yuzu?" Ichigo rubbed the back of his head and looked down ashamedly.

"I, er, kinda lost her," he told her. Karin noticed Renji behind Ichigo eying Toshiro, but ignored him.

"You lost her? She isn't some pen you can just lose and forget about, she's our sister, you idiot! Where did you last see her?"

"Err, in the other living room," Ichigo questioned more then answered. It was the he noticed Toshiro standing beside his sister. He raised an eyebrow.

"Hitsugaya? What're you doing here?" Toshiro turned his eyes to the taller boy and shrugged.

"Karin and I were talking, and she was starting to get worried about her sister so I said I would come with her to check on her. I can help look for her, if you want." Ichigo observed Toshiro before nodding. No matter if he liked Toshiro talking to his little sister or not, he needed all the help he could get right now.

* * *

Rukia, Yuzu, and Tatsuki walked around, searching for Ichigo and his friend. It shouldn't have been hard; how many other extremely tall, orange haired or red haired boys were at this party? Just then someone crashed into Yuzu and she fell to the ground with a shriek.

"Hey!" Tastuki shouted, raising her fist at the boy who had knocked into her while Rukia helped Yuzu off the ground, "Watch where you're going, stupid little punk!" The boy ran off scared and Tatsuki turned to see Rukia examining the girl's wrist.

"She landed on it wrong," she told her friend, "I think it will be alright, but I don't want her to be hit again. Will you continue looking in here while I take her outside? You never know, he could have gone outside to look for her or something." Tatsuki nodded and they split ways. Rukia pulled Yuzu close behind her, weaving through the crowd. Somehow they managed to reach the front door and stepped outside into the nice night. A gust of cool air washed over them, making the girls shiver slightly.

"Here's fine," Rukia said, looking around before turning to Yuzu, who was cradling her wrist. Rukia's eyes softened and she gently took her injured wrist from her.

"Are you alright? Does it hurt?" Yuzu shrugged and smiled.

"A bit, but it's alright. My dad will be able to fix it right up." Rukia remembered Ichigo mentioning his dad was a doctor and remembered the clinic Ichigo had taken her to when she twisted her ankle.

"Oh yeah, you're dad's a doctor, right? Your family owns a clinic?" Yuzu smiled and nodded.

"Yep, that's us, Kurosaki clinic! My dad's always been a doctor, but he only decided to take over the family clinic after my mom died," Yuzu told her sadly. Rukia's heart sank.

"Yes, Ichigo told me about your mother passing away," she said, trying to dig up as least bit of pain as she could, "I'm very sorry." Yuzu smiled gratefully.

"Thanks. I'm a little surprised he told you, he usually doesn't ever like to talk about mom. Out of all of us, I think Ichigo was the one most affected by her death. Ichigo was real mama's boy, you know." Rukia laughed, hardly being able to believe it.

"Really? I would never have expected-"

"Yuzu!"

* * *

Tatsuki bulldozed through the crowd, keeping her eyes peeled for the tall strawberry and his stupid friend. She was starting to get frustrated; where was he? Just then she spotted Karin in the crowd, standing next to Toshiro. Tatsuki ran up to her and tapped on her shoulder. Karin turned to the older girl, and her face turned from worry into surprise when she saw who it was.

"Tatsuki?"

"Yeah, hey Karin. Hitsugaya," she greeted quickly, "Karin, where's your brother?"

"Over there looking for Yuzu with Renji," the girl answered, pointing, "Why do you-"

"I know where your sister is."

Ichigo sighed in exasperation. He was the worst brother ever! How could he lose his sister in a place like this?

"Ichigo!" Turning, Ichigo spotted Tatsuki darting towards him through the crowd, Karin and Toshiro close on her heels.

"Tatsuki?" Ichigo started once she reached him, "What are you-"

"Ichigo, I found Yuzu," Tatsuki interrupted.

* * *

"Yuzu?" The young girl turned to see Ichigo, Renji, Karin, Tatsuki, and a short white-haired boy she didn't know walking towards her.

"Ichigo! Karin!" She exclaimed, running towards them. Ichigo caught her and wrapped his arms around her tightly, not wanting to let go. He kneeled in front of her so they were eye level.

"I'm sorry, Yuzu, I'm so sorry," he told her, true sadness and regret in his eyes. Yuzu smiled at her brother.

"It's alright, Ichigo, it was my fault, I just couldn't keep up." Ichigo shook his head and smiled. Just then he caught site of Rukia, who had been watching the whole encounter with a small smile on her face.

"Thanks," he told her, standing. For a moment she looked surprised, and then smiled and nodded.

"No problem."

After a while they found Orihime and Momo, who were both in strange, quiet moods. No one could find Rangiku, who was probably drunk and passed out somewhere, so Toshiro had to ride with Orihime.

"Aren't you coming, Rukia?" Orihime asked as Toshiro climbed into the front seat and sat looking bored. Rukia sighed and shook her head.

"No, I think I'm going to walk," she said. After a little bit of protesting, Orihime finally gave in and hugged her friend before leaving.

Tatsuki offered her a ride, which she declined, and left with Momo. Ichigo asked Renji to drive Karin and Yuzu home, and he agreed. Rukia and Ichigo both watched as Renji pulled away, having Karin in the front seat and Yuzu in the back. They stood in silence for a moment before Rukia turned to Ichigo.

"So how are you getting home?" she asked. Ichigo glanced at her, a look in his eyes she knew meant he needed to talk about something serious.

"You wanna take a walk?"

The pair started down the street together in silence. Rukia continued to glance at Ichigo, worried about his sullenness.

"Ichigo? Are you-"

"Thank you," he muttered. Rukia's eyebrows shot up in surprise. He continued to stare at the ground, but she could tell he was sincere. Rukia's eyes softened.

"I told you it was no problem, didn't I?"

"But it was!" Rukia jumped a bit when he yelled. He turned to her, sadness and disappointment and self hatred burning in his eyes.

"I almost lost her," Ichigo said angrily, "It's all my fault! So many things could have happened to her, and I wouldn't have been able to protect her, and it would be all my fault!" Rukia stared at him sadly, at a loss of what to do. She set a hand tentatively on his arm.

"Ichigo, it's alright," she said, "We found her, didn't we? Nothing happened to her." Ichigo shook his head, refusing to believe her.

"She hurt her wrist because of me. If I had just kept track of her, that never would have happened! What if we hadn't been able to find her? What would have happened to her?" Ichigo felt a large lump rise in his throat, making it hard to talk. Rukia pulled his arm to stop him. Both had stopped walking now, their bodies facing each other.

Ichigo refused to meet her eyes, and Rukia grabbed his face and pulled it down to hers, forcing him to look her in the eye.

"You listen to me," she said, "It was not your fault. That place was huge, and Yuzu is a tiny girl. She was bound to get lost sometime whether she was with you or not. You are a great brother for caring so much, and she's lucky to have you. Yuzu loves you very much and I can tell she would never blame you for anything that happened to her, and if it counts for anything, neither would I, so stop blaming yourself. She could have gotten hurt even when she was with you, there's no controlling what happens, but you can make sure that next time you're more careful. Got it?"

It was silent for a moment as Rukia caught her breath after her long speech and Ichigo stared at her with soft eyes that made her pale cheeks turn slightly red. Ichigo reached up and wrapped his large hands around her small, petite ones. He pulled them away from his face before leaning in slowly and lightly pressing his lips to her cheek. Rukia immediately turned red as he pulled away.

"Thank you," he murmured, looking her straight in the eye. Rukia met his stare and nodded. Ichigo straightened and looked around them. They were the only ones on the street, and it was getting pretty late. The air was cooler now, and the wind had picked up. He saw Rukia shiver as a large gust of wind blew by them and shrugged off his jacket. Ichigo placed it on her shoulders and she looked up at him with her large, beautiful, indigo eyes. Ichigo turned away to hide his blush and started walking again. Rukia smiled and followed after him.

They walked in companionable silence until they finally reached Rukia's home. The lights were still on inside, and Rukia wondered if Hisana was asleep yet.

"Are you going to get in trouble with your brother?" Ichigo asked. Rukia shrugged.

"Maybe, but it doesn't matter. I know a way I can get to him," she said with a smirk. Ichigo raised an eyebrow at her.

"And that would be?" Rukia grinned.

"There's some kind of history between him and my ballet teacher, and every time I bring it up he freezes and doesn't want to talk about it. He still won't tell me what it is, and it's starting to get on my nerves," she said, frowning.

"What's your teacher's name?"

"Professor Yoruichi." Ichigo looked surprised.

"Yoruichi's your ballet teacher? Weird. She's friends with our band teacher Urahara, who's an old family friend of ours." Rukia raised her eyebrows and felt a spark of hope.

"So you know her? Do you think you could figure out what happened between her and my brother." Ichigo shrugged, digging his hands deep in his pockets.

"I could try, I guess." Rukia grinned.

"Great! Well I better go inside before I get into even more trouble. See you later, Kurosaki!" she called, heading for the door. Rukia turned just in time to see him smirk before he turned and started walking away.

"See ya around, Kuchiki."

* * *

**There we go! Told ya it was kinda long... well, at least it seemed long while I was writing it :) so do you think I should put Myoka in more? Do you want more drama with what's-her-face and Rukia? (By what's-her-face I mean Nel) Maybe we'll get to finally see what the deal is between Byakuya and Yoruichi! Just tell me, your wish is my comand!**

**Unless I don't like it, then you will have to suffer :) just kidding! anyways, I was wondering if knew movies were ever added on here, 'cuz i saw a movie the other day that I would love to write ff's for but it's not on here. :/ Anyways, review and stuff, thanks! :D**


	12. Chapter 11

**Hey there! Sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry! I know this is a really late update, but I've been super-duper busy! Sorry if you don't like this chapter much; it's late and I just wanted to get this uploaded so you guys would have something to read before I got back into this. I've had a lot to do, and I tried to write what you guys wanted me to! Again, there are other couples than just IchiRuki, and if you have any suggestions, just let me know! Also I think I might put RenjixTatsuki in here, so let me know what you think! Anyways,**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Rukia awoke the next day with a smile on her face. As she got ready, she remembered last night and blushed. Ichigo had acted so… un-Ichigo -ish. She figured that was one of the many sides of Ichigo that he didn't show very often, and Rukia was glad she was one of the few people who got to see it. As she hurriedly brushed through her tangled black nest of hair, she wondered about Yuzu and her arm. _I'll ask Ichigo about it in band, _she decided as she grabbed her bag and hopped downstairs.

Hisana was in her high chair already, trying to eat Cheero's unsuccessfully. Byakuya was going through papers in his briefcase and didn't notice her walk in until Hisana shrieked in delight.

"Ruka!" the little girl squealed, reaching her stubby arms out to her older sister. Rukia smiled at the girl and kissed her on the forehead.

"I'll hold you when I get back," she promised, "but right now you have to finish eating and I've got to get to school." Byakuya closed his briefcase and nodded at her. When she had come home he had been pretty angry, and almost grounded her, but a quick comment about Yoruichi quickly made him excuse himself without punishment. Rukia was just glad that Suki had been out with friends at the moment, otherwise she would have ruined Rukia's get-out-of-jail-free card.

After Hisana was finished with breakfast they all piled into the car and started towards the school.

"Where's Suki?" Rukia asked, not really caring.

"Meeting," Byakuya said shortly. They arrived at the school and Rukia waved to her siblings before rushing towards the school.

* * *

Ichigo buried his face in his pillow with a groan. After walking with Rukia last night he had come home and apologized a million times over until finally his dad kicked him in the gut and ordered him to bed. This wasn't unusual for the Kurosaki family; they were abusive, but caring. Ichigo's mind turned back to what Rukia had told him on their walk and allowed himself a small smile.

She really had a way with words, didn't she? He had acted so different around her last night… after almost losing Yuzu he just couldn't help but beat himself up about it. Ever since his mom… Ichigo shook his head. He wasn't going to think about that. He just needed to get up and get on with the day.

"!"

"Oh no," he mumbled into his pillow before rolling over to avoid his father's morning attack. Ichigo glared up from the floor at his dad, who now stood proudly on his son's bed.

"What are you doing, you psycho?" Ichigo shouted. His dad, Isshin, tutted and wagged a finger at him while shaking his head.

"Now, now, son, no need to be rude! Besides, I'm doing to a favor! Have you checked the clock, my son?"

"What're you talking about?" Ichigo grumbled, turning to his bedside clock. His eyes widened and he sprang up.

"Holy crap, I'm gonna be late!"

* * *

Rukia settled into her seat in band and sighed. Momo had seemed unusually happy this morning, and Rukia hadn't been able to spot Ichigo anywhere. Even now, he wasn't in his seat like he usually would be. The bell rang and the chatter around her died as Professor Urahara stood in front of them and started explaining what they were going to do. Rukia frowned worriedly as the glanced at the empty chair in the row in front of her. Where was Ichigo?

Just then the hall's doors burst open, and there stood a disheveled, panting strawberry. Rukia smirked a bit at his appearance, and had to hide her laugh behind her hand. Ichigo noticed and sent her a glare before turning to Urahara.

"Hello there," Urahara greeted, blinking.

"Hey," Ichigo greeted nonchalantly. There was silence.

"You're late."

"Yeah." Silence.

"…"

"…"

"Well alright then."

"K."

Ichigo made his way to his chair, dumping his stuff unceremoniously on the ground beside him. Urahara started the lesson again, and it wasn't long before Ichigo felt a foot kick the back of his chair.

"What?" he whispered, turning a bit. Rukia leaned forward so he could hear her.

"How's your sister?" Ichigo suddenly remembered that Rukia had been the one to find his sister, and felt she at least had the right to know how she was doing.

"Yuzu's alright," he told her, "My dad checked it out, said she just sprained it a bit. He wrapped it up. It should be good in no time."

"That's good," Rukia sighed, relieved. She had really hoped the girl was okay.

"Oi midget," she suddenly heard Ichigo call out to her. She leaned forward again.

"What?"

"…Thanks." Rukia's eyes softened, and he met her gaze this time. Her eyes seemed to see right through him, completely leave him bare of anything fake about him, and his melted her like butter, making her face burn yet goose bumps rise on her arms. They didn't know how much time they spent like that until finally someone coughed.

The two jumped and turned to see everyone staring at them.

"Um," Rukia stuttered.

"Do what?" Ichigo asked. Urahara raised an eyebrow at them, a small, knowing smirk splayed on his lips.

"Do you two want some privacy?" he asked. The two student's faces flushed as Rukia sat back and Ichigo turned back around to the front. Urahara had to keep himself from laughing as they both assumed an almost identical position, their arms crossed over their chests while they pouted and avoided looking at anyone.

"Alrighty then," he continued, "As I was saying…" The rest of the class was peaceful and the ending bell rang without any interruptions. Ichigo hurried out without saying bye to Rukia and soon Momo approached her.

"Hey," Rukia's friend greeted, "Er, are you alright?" Rukia blushed but decided to play dumb.

"What do you mean?" she asked, leading the way out of the classroom, "Of course I'm alright."

"Ok, if you say so," Momo muttered, picking up that her friend didn't want to talk about it but eying her nonetheless. They split ways once again and headed to their other classes. Lunch came around and Rukia sat at the table with a sigh. She was unusually tired today and was getting pretty annoyed with everyone's loud yelling. The girl hated how everyone seemed totally oblivious to the other people around them. Rangiku sat near the end of the table as usual, laughing and joking around. It turned out she had passed out last night and one of her friends dropped her home. They called Orihime shortly after that to let her know.

"How ya doin'?" Tatsuki greeted, sitting down next to Rukia. She shrugged.

"Fine, I guess. You?" Tasuki sighed and shrugged.

"Alright, I guess, other than that asshole over there is annoying the hell outta me." Rukia looked at where her friend was pointing and spotted the red headed boy they had knocked into last night sitting next to Ichigo a few tables away.

"You're still mad about that?" Rukia asked, amazed that the girl could hold a grudge this long over something so small. Tatsuki continued to glare at the boy as she nodded.

"Damn right I'm still mad," she snarled, "That no-brained, nose pickin' pineapple headed asshole!" Rukia giggled and shook her head at her friend's choice of words. She looked back at that table just in time to see Nel squeeze in next to Ichigo and put her arm around him. Suddenly Rukia felt a deep hate fill her, and it took all she had not to go over there and hit Nel in the face.

"Ugh," Tatsuk groaned, rolling her eyes, "That Nel is such a little brat. Seriously, how desperate can a girl get?" Her eyes were too trained on Nel to notice Rukia's burning glare.

"Is she Ichigo's… girlfriend?" Rukia choked out, somehow able to keep her voice level as she watched Nel giggle and get extremely close to Ichigo. Tatsuki shook her head and rolled her eyes again.

"Nah, she wishes, though. She's so desperate though it's sickening. She's had her eye on him since he came here. She's a little younger than him, I think, but Nel doesn't seem to mind. I think she just figures she should have anything she wants, including Ichigo, but he always just brushes her off." Rukia relaxed a little and watched Ichigo gently but firmly pull Nel's arms off from around his neck and scoot a little farther away from her. Now that she thought about it, Rukia almost laughed at Ichigo's awkwardness as Nel moved closer, almost suffocating him with her boobs.

He seemed to feel eyes with him and he looked around. His eyes finally settled on her and glared when he saw her laughing at him. This only made Rukia laugh more, since his glares weren't very effective when his face was turning red from lack of oxygen as Nel almost crushed him in a hug.

Ichigo stuck his tongue out of her childlishly, and she rolled her eyes at him and stuck her tongue out back. This exchange didn't go unnoticed by Nel, who glared at Rukia before pulling Ichigo's face towards her so he could only see her. Rukia felt a shock of anger run through her. How dare Nel just drag Ichigo's attention away like he belonged to her? Suddenly she frowned at herself. Since when did she care who had Ichigo's attention or not? And why was she so mad at Nel for flirting with Ichigo? It's not like they were together or anything, even after last night…

Rukia shook her head and put the thought aside. It was probably nothing. Instead her mind went to her next class; ballet. She would finally confront Yoruichi about Byakuya.

* * *

Next period Rukia walked into her class determinedly. She spotted Yoruichi stretching on one of the bars by the mirrors. Rukia took a moment to admire the woman's grace and beauty; the way she moved and stretched was very cat-like and graceful. Swallowing her fears, Rukia approached the woman and tapped on her shoulder. Yoruichi turned her golden eyes to the younger girl that so resembled her older brother.

"Yes?" Yoruichi said with a small smile. Rukia offered a small smiled in return.

"'Afternoon, Professor Yoruichi. I was wondering if I could ask you about something." Yoruichi raised an eyebrow at her and crossed her slender arms, leaned against the bar with her hip.

"Sure thing, what's up?" Rukia hid a small smile.

"I talked to my brother the other day," she started off, acting nonchalant. She had to force herself not to smile when she saw Yoruichi stiffen.

"Yes?" Yoruichi said, forcing a fake encouraging smile.

"He said if I wanted to know where you guys knew each other from," Rukia continued slyly, "that I should ask you."

"Oh really?" Yoruichi said, looking at Rukia evenly.. Rukia nodded, matching her gaze.. They stared at each other until finally Yoruichi sighed and dropped her eyes. She looked back up at Rukia with a small smile.

"Alright, you really want to know?" Rukia nodded, feeling excited. Was she finally about to find out what her brother had been hiding from her. Yoruichi smiled a little.

"You're brother and I used to date."

* * *

**Oooh ;) another cliffy-ish :D you got to see a bit more of Ichigo's dad. If you want I'll put him in more later, but right now I didn't feel the need to put him in much. Also Rukia got a little jealous of Nel? :D I didn't put any ToshiroxKarin in here, 'cuz I'm tired and I've had it in a lot so I just wanted to put a bit more IchiRuki in it. Anyways, review! Tell me what you think! Give me suggestions. Oh! IMPORTANT-NESS! I will probably change the rating from K+ to T because of the cussing and such, so just beware! So,**

**RenjixTatsuki? Maybe some drama with Yoruichi and Suki, Byakuaya's ex girlfriend and his current girlfriend? (who I will also mention more later) Well, bye guys! Hope ya like it, and I promise the next one will be better! See ya!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Hola peepsolas. Here it is :) I hope you didn't have to wait too long, I wanted to get it done quick. But yeahs, I promise the story will get better! I just have a lot to do and got a little bit of writer's block goin on, so again, YOUR WISH IS MY COMMAND! (UNLESS IT'S SOMETHING I HATE :)) anyways, give me suggestions and things, and as always,**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Rukia frowned, chewing on her thumb. She was walking from the school slowly, ignoring the people who accidently bumped into her. The school day had ended five minutes ago, and Rukia had gotten a text from Byakuya saying that he was stuck in the office so she would have to walk home. She didn't mind; it gave her more time to think about what had happened in ballet earlier.

_-Flashback-_

_Rukia's jaw dropped._

_"Y-You guys what?" Yoruichi gave her a tight smile._

_"Yes, your brother and I went to high school together, and a few years after that we met again when we worked for the same place," she explained, her eyes glossed over in reminiscence, not even noticing Rukia's shocked expression as she went on, "We were high school sweet hearts, and were together for quite a while. But then my family moved, and we just drifted apart." Rukia detected the sadness in the woman's tone and the pained feeling in her eyes._

_"So that's it," she muttered quietly. Now she finally knew why her brother had seemed to stiff and sad every time she brought it up. Just then another question popped up into her head, and Rukia frowned._

_"Wait, so why did you two act like you didn't know each other every time I asked?" Yoruichi sighed and shrugged._

_"I guess it was because I haven't seen him in such a long time, and you look so much like him… it was a shock, I guess," she told her, shrugging _again, _"I guess I never really got over my crush for him." Yoruichi suddenly laughed._

_"You probably don't want to hear your ballet teacher talking about her crush on your brother. Come on, let's get the class started."_

_-End Flashback-_

Rukia sighed and shifted her bag to a more comfortable position on her shoulder. So they used to date, and Yoruichi still had a crush on her older brother?

What did Byakuya think? He was an ice block, but Rukia knew he still felt something, but she could only hope that he returned Yoruichi's feelings. After all if they got together, Rukia wouldn't ever have to see that annoying Suki ever again. Rukia smirked. That would be great, seeing her brother dump Suki and watching the girl go on a psychotic rampage.

"That you, midget?" Rukia turned to the familiar voice and saw Ichigo not far behind her, brooding with his hands deep in his pockets as always.

"What's up, strawberry?" she greeted, smirking as he scowled.

"Shut up. Anyways, aren't you going home by now? Where's your brother?" Rukia shrugged.

"He's stuck in a meeting so I'm walking home."

"Oh." It was quiet as they walked down the otherwise empty sidewalk. Some cars passed by, but for the most part they were all alone. Rukia glanced at Ichigo. He walked slowly next to her, staring at the ground as if he was deep in thought. Letting curiosity get the better of her, Rukia finally broke the silence.

"What is it?" she asked. Ichigo looked up at her in surprise for a second before frowning again.

"You know that Hitsugaya kid, right?" he asked instead, ignoring her question. Rukia smirked.

"This is about him and your sister, Karin, right? I sit with him at lunch and talk to him a bit, but I don't really know him that well," she answered truthfully. Ichigo sighed, running a hand through his hair.

"I just don't want that little punk doing anything to hurt my sister," he growled. Rukia smiled at his protectiveness over his sister.

"Don't worry about it," she told him, "He's a good guy, and besides, Karin seems like the type of girl who can handle herself." The strawberry sighed.

"Yeah, I guess so. Thanks." Rukia raised an eyebrow at him.

"You say thanks one more time and I swear I'll kill you." Ichigo laughed.

"Bring it on, midget."

* * *

"DAMNIT!" Tatsuki cursed. She had been driving home when all of a sudden her car started acting weird, so she pulled by the side of the road and popped the hood. Now the teen couldn't find out what was wrong; her engine was steaming and wouldn't even start. Tatsuki groaned and kicked at the tire of her car, which in coincidentally ended up hurting her more than the car.

"Shit," she cursed under her breath, trying to ease the pain in her now throbbing foot. Pulling out her cell phone she pulled up Orihime's number and called. It continued to ring and ring until finally Tatsuki groaned and gave up. So Orihime wasn't answering, Rangiku had lost her phone a few weeks ago, she didn't have Toshiro's number, and her parents were out of town. As she scrolled through her contacts a name caught her eye; Rukia. She was a nice girl; she had given Tatsuki her number at the party before the whole missing-kid thing happened.

Tatsuki held her breath as she dialed the number and pressed call.

* * *

Rukia was about to retort to something stupid Ichigo said when suddenly a buzzing sound came from her back. The pair went quiet as she dug in her bag and brought out her cell phone. Checking the caller ID she saw 'Tatsuki' and frowned. What would Tatsuki be calling her for? Rukia flipped the phone open.

"Hello?" she answered.

_"Rukia?"_ Tatsuki's voice crackled over, sounding hopeful and kind of urgent, "Is that really you?"

"Yeah, it's me. Is something wrong?" There was an exaggerated sigh from the other line.

_"Yeah, my car broke down on the side of the road and I don't know how to fix it. Orihime won't answer her phone and my parents are out of town, and I'm sure as hell not gonna pay for it to get towed or anything," _Tatsuki explained, _"So you think you could help me out?"_

"What's going on?" Ichigo's voice suddenly cut through Rukia's concentration.

"Tatsuki's having car troubles and needs someone to help her out," she explained. Ichigo raised an eyebrow.

"That's all? Why doesn't she just call a mechanic?" Rukia rolled her eyes and hit him in the back of the head.

"Idiot! She's on the side of the road, she needs a ride before she gets anything fixed. Stupid strawberry!" Ichigo glared at her.

"It's not my fault you're too dumb to explain that in the first place!" She hit him in the back of the head again and ignored his complaints as she turned back to the phone.

"Yeah Tatsuki? Hey, I don't have a car or anything. My brother is stuck in a meeting so I had to walk home, and so is Ichigo. I can't really think of anyone I know that can help you out…"

"Oh!" Ichigo exclaimed, making Rukia jump. He grinned in triumph.

"I know exactly who to call!"

* * *

Tatsuki sighed, leaning on the side of her car as the sun beat down on her unrelentingly. She had gotten off the phone with Rukia a few minutes ago, who said Ichigo had someone who could help her who could come in a few minutes, but wouldn't tell her who. At first Tatsuki didn't know who Rukia was talking to, but when she heard her call him strawberry and a complaint about her hitting him, she knew it was Ichigo. Tatsuki partially wondered what had happened between them to make them be able to walk home together without completely destroying each other, but mostly she just wanted her damn ride to be here.

The tough teenager sighed again for what seemed like the millionth time today; she was surprised she wasn't breathing hard from lack of oxygen by now. Just when she was thinking about sticking her thumb out and hoping some creepy pedophile doesn't stop by, a truck pulled up behind her car. Tatsuki saw a shock of red hair as the person climbed out of the vehicle and walked to her. A familiar face that she really didn't want to see right now invaded her view, and suddenly Tatsuki wouldn't mind being picked up by some creepy guy in a van. Nothing could possibly be worse than this.

* * *

Rukia shook her head.

"Are you sure we should have called him?" she asked Ichigo, who was looking quite pleased with himself, "I mean, without even telling her?" Ichigo smirked.

"Don't worry about it. He's a great mechanic," he said. She wouldn't ever admit it, but she rather liked seeing that mischievous glint in his eyes. Rukia wouldn't have ever thought that Ichigo could be quite so diabolical.

"Still," she insisted as they took a turn on her street, "Those two are going to murder each other, you know that, right?" Ichigo shrugged.

"Yeah, well Renji loses his temper sometimes…" Rukia shook her head with a smile.

"It's not Renji I'm worried about. You were friends with Tatsuki once, right? You know how she can get." Ichigo smirked.

"I'll give you that, but I still think Renji could hold his own in a fight between them." Rukia raised an eyebrow.

"You've got to be kidding me. You're more stupid than I thought, strawberry (which is saying something) if even after you met Tatsuki you still think she can be beaten by that scrawny pineapple boy." By this time they had made it to the front of the house and she stood on the bottom step facing Ichigo so that they were almost level. Ichigo smirked and shook his head.

"You wanna bet on it, midget?" Rukia smirked.

"You got it, strawberry. I bet you by the end of today Tatsuki will have kicked Renji's ass to the moon." Ichigo smiled that cocky smile of his.

"You're on, midget. Let's say… loser does whatever the winner wants for an entire day." Rukia shrugged.

"If you want such a week bet, strawberry. You got it." They shook hands, grinning at each other. Suddenly Rukia drew extremely close to Ichigo. He felt his face heat up and confusion set in.

"See ya when I win, strawberry," she told him almost seductively, then leaned in and pressed her lips to his burning cheek, mimicking his action the other night. Pulling away, Rukia threw him a cocky smile and a wink before stepping into her house and slamming the door behind her. Ichigo scowled once the spell was broken and started to walk away from the house. Stupid midget. Why did she have to get so close and give him certain… thoughts? Ichigo shook the thought out of his head. It wasn't her, it was just his hormones going whack… right?

Tatsuki glared the deadliest glare Renji had ever seen before in his life.

"You!" she shouted, "You little prick, what're you doing here?" Renji, having too big an ego to see when it was time to quit, glared back defiantly.

"I'm helping you out," he snapped, "if you haven't noticed, you psychopath! Ichigo called me and said a friend needed help with their car, so I came to help. He didn't tell me it was you I'd be helping out!" Tatsuki crossed her arms and huffed.

"Rukia didn't tell me who was helping me, either. Damnit, those clowns are gonna get it, settin' this shit up. So are ya gonna help me or not?" Renji crossed his arms. He refused to be bossed around by a woman, even if it was one as strong and stubborn as her.

"I don't know now," he said, "I might just go back home and chill, seeing as you didn't want my help when you first saw me. Now if you asked nicely, maybe…" Tatsuki was boiling over with rage. How dare this guy talk to her like that! If she didn't need his help she would have knocked his teeth out of his head by now.

"Just fix the car so we can get out of here," she growled, trying to contain all of her anger. Renji tapped his chin with his index finger as if he was thinking.

"Hmm… I don't think that was very nice, now-" Finally Tatsuki blew up.

"JUST FIX THE DAMN CAR, YOU ASSHOLE!"

* * *

Rukia walked into the living room with a smile on her face. Ever since the thing with Ichigo in front of her house, she couldn't quit smiling. She was so out of it that she almost didn't notice Suki sitting on the sofa looking at a magazine.

"Oh, it's you," Suki said distastefully, looking up from her magazine. She raised an eyebrow when she saw Rukia's expression.

"What's with you today?" Rukia snapped out of her dazed state and glared at the older woman. She opened her mouth to retort when something suddenly popped into her head. Suki eyed her carefully. She didn't like how her expression had gone from love-drunk to angry and now to having a mischievous shine in her eyes. Rukia smirked at both her own thoughts and Suki's cautious expression.

"You know," she said lightly, picking up one of Hisana's small toys and pretending to be interested in it, "I thought you would have been gone by now." Suki glared at her.

"And what on earth would make you think that?" Rukia shrugged, tilting her head.

"I don't know," she said airily, pretending to wave it off, "It's just that I figured my brother would have dumped you by now considering his past has recently, eh, caught up with him." Suki glared at her again, contemplating.

"What are you talking about?" Rukia feigned surprise.

"You mean you didn't know? His high school sweet heart is one of my teachers. They were apparently really fond of each other. Or didn't he tell you?" Rukia gasped dramatically, then tutted, "I would have thought he would at least tell you of his past, especially since it was so close to him. Ah well, I guess it's just a matter of time, right?" The look on Suki's face was downright comical. Her entire face had turned bright red and her eyes were narrowed, ready to kill someone. The poor magazine was crippling under the grip of her nails, whose knuckles were now turning white. Rukia had to leave the room to hide the huge grin she wore on her face.

* * *

The silence in the truck hung heavily over the two passengers, along with a cloak of tension. Renji had hooked Tatsuki's car onto the back of his truck and they were now driving to her house. Tatsuki glared out the window, not really acknowledging anything that passed by. How did she get stuck in this situation with pineapple head anyway? Stupid Rukia, stupid Ichigo. That was the last time she'd call either them for help. Of course, she was getting home, so she supposed that's what mattered most.

"Right here," Tatsuki spoke, and Renji turned and pulled up in front of her house. It was a small, white, modest one, and Renji had to admit it wasn't bad. He had expected something darker, with a lawn overgrown with weeds with trash in the front, not a nicely trimmed, clean one.

"I'll take your car to the shop tonight," Renji told her, "It should be done by tomorrow morning, so come by and pick it up."

"Fine." Without a thanks or so much as a good bye, Tatsuki climbed out of the truck and slammed the door a little harder than necessary. She trudged across the lawn towards her front door and dug through her pockets for the keys. Unlike other guys, Renji stayed while she searched for her keys instead of driving away the minute she got out of the car.

"Shit." Tatsuki cursed. It was a good thing he didn't drive away, because she forgot her fucking keys. **(Tatsuki's expression right now: -_-) **She pivoted and walked back to Renji's car. He raised an eyebrow at her in question.

"No keys," she told him. He sighed and rubbed the back of his head.

"Well don't you have anyone to call who has the keys?" Tatsuki shook her head. My parents don't come back until, like, one in the morning, and they're the only ones who have it." Renji sighed again.

"Friends?"

"All busy or just won't answer their damn phones." Renji finally gave up.

"Fine. If you want you can come over to my house for a while until your parents come home or whatever." Tatsuki rolled her eyes and climbed into the truck.

"Fine, let's just get this day in hell over with."

* * *

**There we are! Sorry, not very good, I know :/ it's like 11 something so I didn't have time to think of some diabolical, clever scheme. :) so tell me if you want more of the other couples in here such as MomoxKira and OrihimexUlquiorra. And if there are any other characters or couples I don't have that you want in here, just let me know! Oh and I'M CHANGING IT TO RATED T! just so you know :) well, see ya!**


	14. Chapter 13

**Hey there :) sorry, i've been uber busy, so here it is! ugh, writer's block SUCKS! D: but I hope you like this! Be warned: it's very short! but it's late and I didn't know really what to put next, so the next chaper will be a lot longer, promise! again, give suggestions and things!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Tatsuki huffed as she slipped out of her shirt and threw it on the floor. She was at Renji's house in is bathroom, having finally convinced him to let her take a shower. He had taken her with him to the garage he worked at, and all of the sweat and grease there was almost too much for even Tatsuki. She sighed, running a hand through her hair. It wasn't that she was grateful: she was very glad someone had been able to help her out, even if it was the stupid pineapple. But right now she just wanted to be at home in her own bed, talking on the phone with Orihime pretending to listen what the girl was saying while she demolished people on her video game.

Tatsuki reached behind her and started to unclip her bra when suddenly the bathroom door burst open.

* * *

Rukia groaned. It was getting late and she still had to do her homework. She was good in everything at school except for one thing; art. Mostly she just doodled small rabbits on her notebooks, but her art teacher really wanted to her try. Finally she gave up after the fifth attempt at drawing a tree that didn't look like an old woman's foot and skipped downstairs.

Hisana had gone to sleep long ago, but Senna was still in the living room, cleaning up the little girl's mess. Rukia smiled when she saw the girl.

"Hey," she greeted quietly. Senna turned and smiled at her.

"Hey Rukia," she helloed back, "How's art going?" Rukia sighed and rolled her eyes in response, making the other girl giggle.

"C'mon, it can't be that bad." Rukia shook her head.

"You have no idea. I think I need to clear my head. Would you cover for me if I went to the park for a little with my sketch pad?" Byakuya would kill her if he found out Rukia sometimes snuck out in the middle of the night to the park. Senna smiled.

"Of course. Just be back quick, ok? And be careful." After agreeing with her friend and easing her worries, Rukia headed out quietly in the night, sketchpad in hand.

As she walked down the street towards the park, a gust of wind blew by and the small girl shivered. Rukia cursed at herself. Why couldn't she ever remember to bring her jacket? Bowing her head against the cool wind, she continued her way through the dark, empty street. After a while she arrived in the park. It was dark and empty, the only sound being the rustling of bushes and creaks of the swings in the slight breeze. Rukia walked over to a bench that sat under a lamp post and place her note pad in her lap. She poised her pencil over the paper and moved in to start drawing when suddenly a familiar voice called out her name.

* * *

Ichigo walked down the dark street slowly, his hands deep in his pockets and his face brooding as always. He had escaped dinner a few minutes ago, dodging his father's pleas to stay home and play a board game or something, then whining about his delinquent son. Ichigo kicked at a rock in his path lackadaisically. The day was coming soon, he could feel it. This morning he didn't even want to drag himself out of bed. He had thought he had gotten over this; that he could handle the day nearing without wanting to just go and disappear from the face of the earth.

Ichigo sighed and finally looked up from the ground to notice he was in the park. It seemed totally empty and he almost continued walking when he spotted a small, dark figure hunched over on a bench under one of the street lamps. He continued walking closer cautiously until he was close enough to see that it was a small raven haired girl, her hair so dark it matched the night and her skin so pale it practically glowed. She was carefully moving her pencil across a piece of paper, but Ichigo couldn't tell what she was doing.

"Rukia?" Her hand slipped and the girl groaned in aggravation, causing Ichigo to smirk a bit. Rukia looked up to glare at the man who had interrupted.

"Look what you did, you jerk! You messed up my drawing! And it was so much better than the other ones, too…" Ichigo walked closer and grabbed the note pad from the girl's hands despite her protests. He frowned after observing the dark curves and squiggles on the paper.

"What is this? Some kind of abstract, Picasso crap?" Rukia stomped hard on his foot and snatched the notepad bag whilst Ichigo bent over in pain.

"No! It's a tree, thank you! I have to do it for art," she explained, sitting on the bench once again and gazing at the paper dejectedly. Ichigo's eyes softened and he sat down next to her.

"I hate this subject!" Rukia complained, throwing up her hands as if in surrender, "When am I ever going to use this crap, anyways?" Ichigo shrugged.

"There are lots of reasons. First off, if you want to do anything in art like be an artist or an art teacher. Another is that it helps you express yourself so you can be more confident in who you are." Rukia raised her eyebrows.

"Wow. When did I run into Winston Churchill?" Ichigo rolled his eyes.

"That doesn't even make sense." Rukia rolled her eyes this time.

"Like it matters. Anyways, I just can't do this!" Ichigo shrugged and they sat in silence for a moment.

"Hey," he said suddenly, "have you heard from Tatsuki?" Rukia frowned as if trying to remember.

"Now that you bring it up, no. She was supposed to text me to tell me how it was going but I haven't heard from her." Ichigo frowned also.

"Weird, I haven't heard from Renji either," he said, then smirked, "I bet he finally lost it and kicked Tatsuki's ass. He's not afraid to hit a girl, you know." Rukia smirked and shook her head.

"Whatever. It's Tatsuki you should be worried about losing her temper. She's not afraid to hit a girl, either."

"Whatever, midget." They lapsed into silence once again and Rukia gazed mournfully at her paper. How in the world was she supposed to have this finished when she had no artistic ability whatsoever? Meanwhile Ichigo found himself not being able to tear his eyes from the small woman in front of him. Her dark, silky black hair hung at her shoulders, moving slightly with every movement. The frown she had on her face when she was frustrated was adorable, but Ichigo thought it was much cuter when she smiled. Her eyes reflected the moon, mesmerizing him even when they weren't focused on him.

Ichigo shook his head. What was he thinking? She was just a stupid midget. Sure, they were kind of friends, but why was he thinking like this about her? Finally he sighed and reached over, grabbing Rukia's hand that was holding her pencil. She looked up in surprise at him.

"Look, do it like this," he said, guiding her hand down the paper. His large, warm hand encased her petite, cool one, and the contact made it so that Rukia wasn't focusing on the picture anymore. Ichigo had moved closer so that he could lead her hand across the sketch pad, so now his rock hard chest brushed up against Rukia's side. She shivered, but not at the cold. Suddenly his hand stopped moving and Rukia looked up at him to see him staring at her. Ichigo couldn't take it anymore; her small body so close to his, her small jumps at any movement he made. When she looked up at him with those gorgeous indigo eyes, he felt his body lean forward without his mind's permission.

Rukia's brain went dead when Ichigo came closer, and she felt herself leaning in, too. His eyelids started drifting shut, and she felt hers drooping, also, when finally their lips brushed against each other. At first the kiss was simple, sweet, just their lips lightly pressed against each other. But then, as if on cue, they started to move and get closer. Ichigo held himself up on the bench with on hand by Rukia's waist and encased the side of her face with the other. Rukia scooted closer and wrapped her arms around his neck, tilting her head slightly to get closer. Just as they were coming even loser, a vibrating sound erupted in the air.

The two jumped apart, flushed and breathing hard. Rukia pulled her phone out of her pocket and flipped it open.

_Where are you? I'm about to leave, so hurry!_

_-Senna_

Rukia cursed under her breath, slipping her phone into her pocket and standing, sketch pad in hand. She turned to Ichigo and blushed, which she didn't do too often.

"Um, I have to go," she said, "My brother doesn't know I'm out, so…" Ichigo nodded. There was an awkward pause before Rukia said,

"Well, see you at school tomorrow…" and started running off. The reason she ran was that her brother wouldn't catch her, but also she needed to get home to think about the new situation with a certain strawberry.

* * *

**See? It's really short. But it seemed really long when writing it D: so what do you think of the scene? (You know what I'm talking about ;)) If ya want there'll be a lot more of that in the future. So give suggestions, your wish is my command, blah blah blah. Hope you like it! Review and keep ready, 'cuz I promise they will get better! Lata allagatas :)**


	15. Chapter 14

**OH MY GOODNESS! D: I'M UBER DUBER SUBER CUBER DUBER SORRY! I have been SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO SO busy! Well, here it is! You have to comment to remind me to write this, okay? AND GIVE ME IDEAS SO IT'S EASIER CUZ I'M A SLACKER! Anyways,**

**Enjoy :)**

* * *

At school the next morning Rukia met Momo in their usual spot with a huge smile on her face. Last night she had went home and gushed to Senna all about what happened before she had to leave, and then went to bed to have a dream about a certain strawberry. Momo raised her eyebrows upon seeing Rukia's expression.

"Hey," she greeted cautiously. Rukia grinned.

"Hey, what's up?"

"Nothing, but uh… Why are you so happy?" Rukia's mind went back to last night, Ichigo's lips on hers, their breath mingled together…. Momo watched curiously as her friend's face flushed and her eyes glazed over in remembrance, and a look that Momo could've sworn was lust appeared in them. She waved a hand in front of Rukia's face, who jumped, her eyes snapping back to Momo.

"Oh, sorry," she said, flustered. Just then the warning bell rang and other kids pushed past the two girls on their way to class.

"I'll tell you later," Rukia promised, and Momo nodded before they headed off to class. Once they walked in and headed to their seats, Rukia noticed Ichigo wasn't there yet and frowned. Where was he? Was he going to be late again? She sat in her seat and started to take out her flute, her mind elsewhere. Rukia sighed, shaking her head to try and stop thinking about what had happened last night. She looked up just as the bell rang to see Ichigo walk in slowly. Her heart leapt, but then she frowned; he didn't look like he usually did.

His hands were dug deep in his pockets, and he slouched more than usual. Ichigo's bright hair was more disheveled, the frown on his face was deeper, and there were dark bags under his eyes. Ichigo glanced at her, and scowled upon seeing her worried expression. He sat down in his seat without saying anything to her. Rukia frowned.

What was with him? Was it because of her, or something else? A little after Urahara started the class, Rukia leaned forward and tapped Ichigo on the shoulder. He turned his head towards her in answer and Rukia leaned closer to whisper in his ear.

"Hey, are you alright?"

"I'm fine," he said shortly. Rukia sighed, starting to get frustrated,

"Seriously Ichigo, tell me. What's wrong?" Finally he met her gaze with sad amber eyes that made her heart break.

"You remember what I told you about my mom?" Rukia frowned for a second, wondering what that had to do with anything. She opened her mouth to ask before it hit her.

"Ichigo," she breathed, staring deeply into his eyes. Ichigo dropped her gaze and turned back around. Rukia sat back in her seat, at a loss. He was sad, and she felt as if there was nothing she could do about it. What was she supposed to say? I'm sorry? The rest of the class Rukia was deep in thought, and she didn't notice the period had ended until Momo tapped on her shoulder.

Rukia jumped up and looked around, her eyes scanning around for Ichigo, but it seemed he had already left.

"Are you alright, Rukia?" Momo asked her friend worriedly. Rukia nodded and stood. They started out of the classroom, tossing a goodbye to Urahara before leaving.

"Yeah, I'm alright." Momo didn't seem to believe her but nodded anyways.

"So do you know what was up with Kurosaki this morning? He didn't look too good." Rukia shook her head, and Momo shrugged before continuing to talk about something else. Rukia didn't want to tell Momo about why Ichigo was so bummed just in case he didn't want anyone or many people to know.

* * *

At lunch Rukia approached her table, her eyes scanning around the cafeteria for any sign of the tall orange haired teen. Not spotting him, she left her table and walked down the hallway. Glancing out the front door she spotted a patch of orange and immediately stopped. Rukia hurried towards the entrance and walked out, turning to her left to see Ichigo leaning against the building, his head down. It was raining outside, but he didn't seem to notice. Rukia sighed in relief at finding him and went to stand beside him.

They were silent for a while, the only sound being the melancholy pounding of the rain.

"You should go back in," Rukia said finally, breaking the silence, "You'll get a cold if you stay out here." Ichigo simply shrugged in answer. Rukia examined him, at a loss. She opened her mouth to say something, but Ichigo was right in front of her, the tip of his finger resting on her lips.

"Don't say anything," he told her. Rukia nodded and Ichigo leaned forward. His lips brushed hers lightly before he deepened the kiss, his fingers tangling in her wet hair. Rukia clung to his shirt as her knees went weak and she kissed him back. After a while Ichigo pulled away and blushed.

"Sorry," he muttered. Rukia shook her head and stepped forward.

"Don't be." Ichigo looked down at her, tears in his eyes, and Rukia wrapped her tiny arms around him as he began to cry.

* * *

Tatsuki shifted in her seat nervously. She had barely gone to sleep last night after what had happened. What was going on? Since when did she—Tatsuki shook her head. She couldn't think about that. Just then she spotted Renji across the lunch room. He noticed her and immediately his eyes widened and he ducked out of sight. Tatsuki let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. This was going to be a long week.

* * *

After school Rukia walked with Ichigo. He had said earlier he wanted to show her something and she agreed. She had already called her brother and told him, and surprisingly he was okay with it. It was silent as they walked, and soon the passed the Kurosaki Clinic and Ichigo's house. They soon made it up a tall hill and Rukia finally found out where he had taken her; the graveyard.

Rukia turned to Ichigo with wide eyes but he just took her hand and kept walking. Soon she spotted Yuzu sitting in front of a grave, bawling, while Karin stood calmly behind her though Rukia could see she was more down than usual.

"Ichigo," Rukia finally said quietly, and Ichigo turned to her, "I don't think I should be here. I mean, this is your family's time—"

"Please, Rukia," Ichigo begged, "I don't know why, but… I really want you here." Rukia stuttered for a second before nodding. Karin was the first to notice them.

"Hey," she greeted nonchalantly, though now Rukia was close enough to see the pain in her eyes. Rukia couldn't force herself to speak, so she just waved. Yuzu jumped up and started wiping her eyes.

"Oh, Rukia! It's nice to see you! I'm glad you're here. S-Sorry, I didn't know you were coming, so—" Rukia stepped forward and took Yuzu's hands to halt her from wiping her tears.

"Yuzu," she said quietly. Yuzu stopped and sniffled a little before sobbing. Rukia brought the girl into a hug, feeling tears slip down her face. She rubbed the girls' back as she cried, glancing at Ichigo. He stood with his hands in his pockets and his head low, but often he'd glance up at the two girls before looking back away. Finally Yuzu's cries quieted and she pulled away, wiping her eyes. She looked at Rukia and giggled sheepishly.

"I'm sorry, Rukia," she said, "But… thank you." Rukia smiled sweetly at the younger girl.

"It's alright, Yuzu. I understand."

"Do you really?" Karin said suddenly, somewhat harshly. Ichigo's head snapped up and he looked like he was going to say something but Yuzu beat him to it.

"Karin! Why would you say that?" Rukia put a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"It's alright, Yuzu," she said, "It's true. I know people always say that they understand when they really don't and it gets annoying. Karin, I don't know exactly what you went through, because my situation was different. You see, both my parents died when I was younger—"

Yuzu gasped and Ichigo gazed at Rukia with sad, understanding eyes. Karin looked away.

"Oh Rukia, I'm so sorry," Yuzu said truthfully. Rukia smiled sadly at her.

"It's alright, Yuzu." Ichigo approached Rukia and took her wrist, starting to drag her away.

"C'mon, let's go," he said. Rukia thought that he might need to stay, but banished the idea. If he wanted to stay then he would. As they were walking away Karin called out to them. She looked directly into Rukia's eyes.

"Sorry." Rukia nodded and gave a small smile before they continued to walk away.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay?" Rukia asked him. Ichigo shook his head.

"No, it's fine." Rukia noticed Ichigo hadn't let go of her hand and smiled a little.

"I'm sorry, by the way," he spoke after a while. Rukia shook her head.

"It's alright," she responded, "I know what it feels like when someone tries to relate to you when they don't really understand." Ichigo stopped walking and turned to her. The rain had faded by now and the sun hung high and bright.

"Thanks for coming," he said, "I know you didn't want to." Rukia smiled and shook her head.

"I did want to go, I just didn't know if I should since I never met your mom. It just seemed like only family should be there." Ichigo shook his head.

"I have no idea why, but I really, really wanted you to come. You… you would have liked her."

"I wish I'd met her." Ichigo leaned down to be only a few centimeters from her.

"Thank you… for everything." Rukia smirked a bit.

"What did I tell you about saying thank you? Big oaf," she said, thumping him on her head. Ichigo smirked a bit, the closest he had gotten that day to smiling, and closed the distance between them to kiss her.

* * *

**THERE YOU GO! In case you didn't know, it was the anniversary of Misaki's death. (Ichigo and his sister's mother) To most of you you're like, DUH! But some people might have missed it :) Anyways, tell me what you think, and GIVE ME SUGGESTIONS! Just send me a message and let me know what you want! Your wish is my command, unless I don't like it!**

**Well, ADIOS!**


	16. Chapter 15

**HOLA! Alright, this one is a little different. It starts out with a flashback of what happened the other day, and then goes on to the day after the last chapter, I guess? Or maybe what happened during... Either way you want to look at it, I guess :) anyways, GIVE ME IDEAS YOU SLACKERS! I can't do it all on my own :'( so yeah read and,**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Tatsuki huffed as she slipped out of her shirt and threw it on the floor. She was at Renji's house in is bathroom, having finally convinced him to let her take a shower. He had taken her with him to the garage he worked at, and all of the sweat and grease there was almost too much for even Tatsuki. She sighed, running a hand through her hair. It wasn't that she was grateful: she was very glad someone had been able to help her out, even if it was the stupid pineapple. But right now she just wanted to be at home in her own bed, talking on the phone with Orihime pretending to listen what the girl was saying while she demolished people on her video game.

Tatsuki reached behind her and started to unclip her bra when suddenly the bathroom door burst open. There stood Renji, in nothing but a towel. Tatsuki's eyes roamed over his surprisingly chiseled and tattooed chest before reaching his shocked expression. They stood there in shock for a moment, examining each other, before suddenly Tatsuki snapped back to reality and yelled.

"YOU PERVERTED ASSHOLE!" Renji jumped, but didn't run away with his tail behind his legs like most boys did when Tatsuki yelled. Instead he held his ground and glared back.

"I didn't do anything!" he shouted, "What kind of idiot leaves the bathroom door open?" Tatsuki's face flushed because she knew he was right, but that didn't mean that he would win this war.

"Who just barges in when they see the door closed and knows there's a guest in the house?" she retorted, "You ever heard of knocking?" Luckily she hadn't yet unclipped her bra before he came in, but she still reached down and grabbed her shirt to hold in front of her.

"I wouldn't have to if you hadn't locked the stupid door!" Renji argued, "None of this wouldn't have happened if you weren't too stupid to handle a simple lock!" That was it. Tatsuki could take an insult or two, suffer some punches, but _no one _doubted her intelligence. Tatsuki jumped forward and punched Renji square in the jaw and he stumbled. Before he hit the floor, though, Renji grabbed Tatsuki's arm and dragged her down with him. Tatsuki landed on top of him and growled angrily. Renji swallowed, knowing he was going to have some serious injuries by the end of tonight. Suddenly he noticed their situation and felt his face redden.

Tatsuki seemed to notice it, too, because her face turned bright red, though Renji was having a hard time picking out which color was anger or embarrassment. Tatsuki jumped up and kicked him in the side.

Renji let out a groan and rolled over, and now that he was out of the way Tatsuki slammed the door behind him. Renji could hear the faint clicking of the bathroom lock as he held his side in pain.

* * *

Orihime groaned and ran a hand through her hair. Usually she was happy and energetic, but that was when she wasn't doing homework. This math was really confusing her. She sat at one of the tables in her brother's pizza shop, staring down the numbers in the book like they were the plague. Her family had owned the pizza place for years, and just before her father died in a car accident, he had passed it on to her brother. Soon she would get to own it, and she'd finally be able to try out all of her concoctions. No one but Rangiku really seemed to like them, but Orihime thought they were delicious.

A bell rang, signaling that a customer had come in, and immediately the temper felt as though it had dropped a few degrees. Orihime felt goose bumps arise along her arms and a shiver ran down her back. A moment of silence passed before a cool, unfeeling voice filled the emptiness.

"What are you doing?" Orihime jolted up in surprise to see the boy she had seen at the party standing there.

"Oh, hi!" she greeted, smiling, "You're the boy I met at the party. Ulquiorra, right?" Ulquiorra nodded.

"Um, well please, have a seat." Hesitantly, Ulquiorra took a seat across from her and she smiled.

"Nice to see you again," she said cheerily. Ulquiorra nodded again, but his eyes seemed drawn to the math book on the table.

"Oh yeah," Orihime said, her shoulders slumping a bit at being reminded of her homework, "I was just doing some work for school. It's really complicated; I don't understand it at all." Ulqiorra was silent for a moment before he reached out a pale white hand and took her pencil. He wrote something down on her paper, the pencil seeming to glide effortlessly on the page, before he set it down and pulled his hand back to fold in his lap.

Orihime stared, jaw dropped, at her paper, where in her opinion the hardest question had been answered neatly and perfectly with no calculator or formula needed. She looked up at Ulquiorra who still sat there calmly.

"Wow, you're really good at this stuff," she exclaimed, smiling, "Do you think you could help me with it?" Ulquiorra contemplated for a minute before nodding, and Orihime's smile widened.

"Thanks, Ulquiorra!"

* * *

Byakuya sighed. Rukia had come home the other day in a mysteriously good mood, and now she was at Senna's house with Hisana. Suki was out shopping with her friends, so he had the entire house to himself. He sat alone in his study, thinking. He could tell Rukia didn't like Suki at all, and even Byakuya had to admit that Suki could get annoying. Even so, she was the only girlfriend he had had for this long of a time besides... Byakuya sighed again and shook his head. Ever since Rukia had told him who her dance teacher was, he couldn't stop thinking about her.

Yoruichi Shihōin.

They had been each other's first everything. First kiss, first real relationship, first se—Byakuya rubbed his eyes. It had been years since he had seen her, and now to find out that she was Rukia's dance teacher, that she was so close… How he wanted to see her again. But he bet it would only serve in bringing up pain for the both of them, since he had a girlfriend and Yoruichi was probably married or with someone. A streak of pain went through his heart at the thought of her with someone else, but he was an adult. He had to face the facts, right? Just then the doorbell rang, and Byakuya managed to bring himself out of his reverie to go downstairs to answer the door.

He straightened himself in a hallway mirror (there was no telling when an impression had to be made) and pulled open the door. There, standing with one hand on her hip and the other touching the back of her hair was a beautiful woman with dark skin, purple hair, and gorgeous honey- golden eyes.

* * *

Orihime squealed in delight.

"I get it now!" It had been almost an hour since Ulquiorra had agreed to help her with her homework, and during this he had come to sit beside her so he could teach easier. Anyone else would have given up on the girl by now, but Ulquiorra remained patient and repeated anything she needed any time she needed it.

"Good," Ulquiorra spoke. He didn't talk a lot, but it always came out cold and powerful. Orihime smiled at the boy.

"Thanks for helping me, Ulquiorra," she said meaningfully, "I know you probably had better things to do than help out dumb ole' me!" Ulquiorra stood then and placed a hand on her head. Orihime looked up at him in wonder.

"Don't call yourself that," he said, then added, "I'm glad I helped. I must go now." Orihime nodded and Ulquiorra grabbed his bag and left. Orihime watched him go, wanting desperately to know more about him. Just then she heard her brother call her from the back and jumped.

"Oh! Sorry brother! I'll be right there!"

* * *

Byakuya tried his hardest to keep the surprise off of his face. How he hated how easily this woman broke his shield, his icy façade.

"Hello, Byakuya," Yoruichi greeted casually, though he could see in her eyes that she, also, was hiding some of her emotion. Byakuya nodded in recognition.

"Yoruichi, it's nice to see you again. Would you like to come in?" Yoruichi smiled a bit but shook her head.

"No thanks, I'm kind of in a hurry. As you probably know by now, I'm Rukia's dance teacher, and I was just here to drop something off. Is she here?" Byakuya shook his head.

"She is at a friend's house helping to babysit Hisana. I could give it to her." Yoruichi nodded and reached into the bag that lay on her shoulder. She pulled out a pair of ballet shoes and handed them over. Byakuya took them with a thanks, but Yoruichi didn't move to leave.

"So is Hisana's yours, then?" Yoruichi asked with a smile that only Byakuya was able to see right through. He remembered that Yoruichi had been gone before Hisana was born and shook his head.

"No, she's my youngest sister. She was born before my mother passed away." Yoruichi's eyes seemed to penetrate him, bringing back sadness that he had long since buried.

"I'm sorry," she said. Byakuya shook his head.

"It was a long time ago. It's alright."

"What about your father?"

"He died soon after my mother." Yoruichi shook her head.

"I'm sorry. I wish…" Yoruichi stopped, contemplating what she was going to say. Finally she looked up at him and smiled.

"Well, I should go," she said, "make sure Rukia gets those shoes. And take care of yourself, alright?" Byakuya nodded.

"She will. And you too." Yoruichi gave him one more cat- like grin before she was gone in a flash. Byakuya shut the door and set the ballet shoes on a nearby table. Yoruichi. She had looked amazing, even more gorgeous than she had when she was younger and they were together. He had thought he caught a little bit of sadness or some leftover feeling from the past in her talking to him, but he was probably just imagining it. Byakuya sighed again. There was no way she was still single being as amazing as she was. But it didn't matter did it? After all he had Suki, right? This thought made him shake his head in disbelief that he even tried to compare the too.

Oh well. As long as Suki and Yoruichi didn't meet, then it would be fine.

* * *

That night Rukia came into his study once Hisana was already put to bed. Byakuya put down the papers he had been looking at and gave his sister his full attention.

"Yes, Rukia? What is it?"

"Well, today Yoruichi said that the principal told her to have a kind of meet the parent night at school tomorrow so we could show you what you are working on. Do you think you can come? It's after school." Byakuya nodded.

"That should be fine." Rukia nodded and started to leave before she stopped.

"Oh, and everyone who lives in our home is supposed to come, so Suki has to come too, otherwise I might get in trouble. Well, night, brother." Rukia left and Byakuya's head fell into his hands. So much for keeping the two apart. What in the world was he going to do now?

* * *

**There you go :) I hope you liked it! I finished it in about five minutes so it might not be as good as it should, but you know what would help? IF YOU SLACKERS WOULD GIVE ME SOME IDEAS! And just tell me if you want more cussing, less cussing, because I'm kind of undecided on it. And tell me if you want a character in here more and I will try my best to put them in. So anyways, review and shtuffs! BYE BYES!**


	17. Chapter 16

**Hey there... hehe ^^" been a while, eh? Sorry, I've been super duper busy (and lazy, but that's beside the point!) I hope you like this one! I do... And remember, this is NOT the end! This might sound like the ending but it's not the last one, I promise! Anyways,**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

Everyone could see that Byakuya Kuchiki was going over the edge. For once he had allowed a slightly worried expression cross his face, and his fingers tapped continuously on the steering wheel.

"Maybe we shouldn't go," he insisted, his eyes flitting hopefully to Rukia in the back seat in the review mirror. Rukia felt bad for her brother, but this gave her a chance to see Ichigo and maybe meet his dad, and perhaps Suki will grow jealous enough of the obvious feelings between her brother and ballet teacher that she'll throw a fit and leave.

"We have to, brother," Rukia told him like she had a million times before, "the principal really wanted to have everyone meet Yoruichi and let her explain what we do in class and stuff." Honestly, Rukia didn't know why the principal was so keen on having a 'meet the teacher's night'. She was just thinking of how she would act when she saw Ichigo there.

* * *

Urahara's Mad Hatter grin grew as more cars pulled up to the school, and he spotted the black, sleek car of Byakuya Kuchiki inching its way closer. Ah, finally he would get to see Yoruichi Shihōin and Byakuya Kuchiki reunited again. Let the show begin!

* * *

Rukia tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear nervously, her eyes fleeting for any sign of the strawberry. She didn't know exactly what had happened the past few days, but one thing was certain; she was falling hard for Ichigo Kurosaki. The small girl shook her head, making her dark curls bounce. If anyone had told her a few days ago that she was going to fall for Ichigo, she would have kicked their asses to Pluto and laughed. But here she was, her heart thumping hard at the mere thought of seeing him.

Oh, what was happening to her? Was she really so pathetic that she had to look around desperately just to get a shot at looking at him? Somehow, though, Rukia couldn't call herself pathetic when she did this. Maybe—hopefully, she thought—he was doing the same thing.

* * *

Ichigo gazed around the crowd while his dad went on about how he was growing up and being ungrateful or something. He trained his eye for any sign of the short, raven haired girl that had somehow caught his heart and opened all of his secrets without even trying. Not ever had he once brought someone outside of his family to his mothers' grave. Sure, people went there sometimes, maybe not specifically hers, but the graveyard.

But this was the first time he had willingly brought a stranger to stand with him and his sisters at his mother's grave. Of course, Rukia wasn't much of a stranger now. He felt she knew way more about him than even he did, and he about her, as if they had some unspoken understanding. Ichigo had to admit, it scared him a bit; such a strange connection with a strange girl was bound to turn up something good or bad, but he had decided after kissing her and walking her home that he would leave it at fate and go along for the ride.

Finally Ichigo spotted dark curls on a short person and, trying to hide the automatic blush that had arisen on his cheeks, moved forward and tapped her on the shoulder.

* * *

Rukia turned to see Ichigo standing in front of her, looking sheepish. She smiled at his expense but decided not to make him suffer too bad.

"Hey," he greeted softly, giving her a soft smile, those amber eyes melting into her. Rukia gave the same smile back.

"Hey," she replied quietly, and Ichigo could feel his heart fluttering at her doe- like indigo eyes seeping through him.

* * *

Byakuya immediately noticed the reaction between his sister and the Kurosaki boy. With a slight sting, he noticed that they gazed at each other like he had once looked at someone, and that person was here tonight. Usually Byakuya would threaten anyone who came within a five- meter range of Rukia, but when he spotted something so pure and genuine in the boy's eyes when he looked down at his sister, Byakuya knew better than to interfere.

"So where's Rukia's ballet class?" Suki asked, making Byakuya turn to her. She had been acting strangely for a while about going to the class, though Byakuya couldn't guess why. Perhaps she had figured out that something was going on between him and Yoruichi. _Had__ gone on, _Byakuya reminded himself. He was not with Yoruichi anymore. Glancing at Suki, Byakuya shook his head.

How in the world had he gotten here?

* * *

"Are you alright?" Rukia asked him. They both knew what she was talking about. Ichigo smiled a bit and nodded.

"Yeah… thanks," he said. Rukia rolled her eyes.

"Again with the thanks…" she reminded him, "You're hopeless!" With this said she through her hands up in the air dramatically. Ichigo grinned.

"It's not my fault you keep on getting more amazing, midget." Oops. He hadn't meant for that to come out. His eyes widened as soon as it slipped from his lips. Rukia looked up at him with large, shocked eyes, her cheeks cherry red. Ichigo rubbed the back of his head uncomfortably, and Rukia felt a soft smile grace her lips.

"Thanks," she told him quietly. Ichigo shrugged and avoided looking at her eyes, still embarrassed. Suddenly Ichigo felt a tug on his pant leg and looked down at a mini Rukia. He glanced up at Rukia and down at the kid and back. Then he kneeled before the little girl, who looked to be about five.

"Yous big," she said, pointing at him with a small, delicate finger.

"And you're small," Ichigo said back, poking her lightly in the chest. The girl giggled and grabbed a fistful of his hair.

"You have bwight hair!" Rukia moved forward automatically, thinking this would make Ichigo mad, but surprisingly he smiled at the girl.

"Yep," he responded, letting the girl continue to play with his hair, "What color is it?" Hisana frowned a bit in concentration.

"Umm….. Owange!" she exclaimed loudly, jumping up with an 'ah ha!' expression. Ichigo chuckled a bit.

"Yep could job, eh…"

"Hisana," Rukia answered for him, kneeling down to be level with them, "She's my little sister I told you about." Ichigo nodded, still smiling.

"She looks just like you," he told her, "she's beautiful." Rukia's face flushed and she looked away. If he kept on saying things like that, she might just give in and start kissing the living daylights out of him.

* * *

Nel wasn't stupid. No matter what people said, she knew Ichigo didn't want her. It wasn't that surprising; no one did. But when she saw the way Ichigo looked at the new girl, a way he had never looked at anyone before, Nel automatically knew it was over. She could no longer hang all over him and pretend to like him. Just then she heard a gruff voice behind her.

"Quite the pair, eh?" Nel turned to see Grimmjow standing there with a bottle of something in his hand, looking over at Ichigo and Rukia playing with her little sister.

"'Never seen Kurosaki that happy before unless he was with his sisters, but this is even different from that," he went on, motioning to the pair. Nel sighed and crossed her arms.

"Yeah, I know," she answered, "Now I've got to stop pretending." Grimmjow raised an eyebrow at her.

"Pretending what?" he asked curiously, taking another swig of whatever was in his bottle.

"That I like him," Nel said with a sigh, "I never did, you know." It was silent for a moment.

"I know." Grimmjow took another drink, keeping his eyes on the couple before them and pointedly off the girl next to him. He had known she never wanted Kurosaki; he had known all along.

"I love you, you know," Nel went on, still watching Ichigo and Rukia. There was silence.

"I know." It was silent for a moment before Nel sighed, trying to ignore the pain in her heart.

"Well good bye, Grimmy." She turned and started to walk away from her childhood friend when suddenly a rough hand grabbed her wrist and pulled her back. Grimmjow stood less than an inch away, his turquoise eyes melting into hers.

"I love you too, you know," he whispered gruffly. A small smile spilled onto Nel's lips.

"I know." And she had known. As Grimmjow brought his lips to hers, Nel realized that deep down, she had always known.

* * *

Byakuya felt his nerves building and building by the second as they inched closer to the dance room. Rukia was still laughing and gazing lovingly at the Kurosaki boy while he served in entertaining Hisana.

He had to admit, Hisana did seem to like him, and the kid was quite good at making her laugh. But Byakuya was drawn out of his thoughts, _any _of his thoughts, when his eyes went back to the dance room and he spotted _her_.

Yoruichi was absolutely gorgeous.

She had her purple hair up in a nice, curly pony tail with pretty, delicate curls down to frame her face. Her shirt was a long, billowing black one that framed her body perfectly and hung over dark jeans. Yoruichi wasn't completely dressed up, but Byakuya thought she was easily the most beautiful woman there.

Suki immediately saw Byakuya's change in mood and turned to see what he was gaping at. A gasp escaped her lips when she spotted Yoruichi. _This _was Rukia's dance teacher, Yoruichi? The one Rukia had said was back from Byakuya's past? _This_ was what she was supposed to compete with?

The woman was absolutely gorgeous, with stunning honey gold eyes and the most white, dazzling smile Suki had ever seen. She looked over at Byakuya, whom was still looking at the woman, and over at Rukia, who was staring at the boy called Kurosaki. They boy had the same look in their eyes. Suki hated to admit it, but she had lost. There was no way Byakuya—or Rukia, for that matter—would pick bitchy her over the goddess.

Suki knew she should have been nicer to Rukia, but it was too late now. She placed a hand on Byakuya's shoulder and he snapped to her, looking slightly flustered at being caught staring at the other woman.

"I'm going now," she said. Byakuya gave her a slight frown. He was _definitely _not himself around that woman. Suki knew of no one else who could break his shield that easily, much less without even talking to him.

"Why?" he asked. Suki glanced over at Yoruichi, and as Byakuya followed her gaze his eyes lit up in realization.

"It's fine," Suki interrupted him before he could even speak, "I understand. You see Rukia? The way she looks at that boy? I'm sure you can't miss it, Byakuya. She's clearly infatuated, maybe even in love. But I don't think you've realized yet that you look at that woman from your past in the same way. Go, Byakuya. You can at least try. I'll be by to pick up my things in the morning."

With that Suki left without letting Byakuya speak one word. What had just happened? Had Suki broken up with him? How had she known that he knew Yoruichi in his past? Finally he came to terms with what happened and looked over at his childhood love. Suki had given him a chance. A chance to take back what he had at childhood, as much as a far shot it was. Hmm, perhaps Suki wasn't as bad as everyone thought she was. After a second Byakuya gathered his nerves, and, taking a deep breath, he approached Yoruichi.

"Yoruichi." The sound of his voice saying her name sent chills up her back and Yoruichi had to gather her breath before turning to smile at Byakuya Kuchiki, her old love.

"Byakuya," she greeted kindly, "I'm glad you made it." She spotted Rukia and Ichigo playing with Hisana, looking at each other with such pureness in their eyes it made her smile.

"Are you not here with someone? I thought I saw someone with you earlier." Yes, Yoruichi had noticed the woman. She had been looking around for a certain icy Kuchiki when she spotted him. Yoruichi knew what she felt must have shown in her eyes, for when she glanced over at the woman by Byakuya's side, she was looking wide- eyed between them, though Byakuya had not yet noticed.

Yoruichi hadn't been surprised that he was with someone, but it hurt just as much.

"You could say we… came to terms with reality," Byakuya answered her, a small smile on his lips, but it went away when he asked, "And what about you?" Yoruichi smiled a bit.

"All on my own tonight," she answered, "Well, and every night, but you know." Byakuya smiled as the woman laughed, believing it was the most beautiful sound in the world.

"I missed you a lot when you left," he told her quietly as soon as her laughter had died down. Yoruichi smiled sadly at him.

"I missed you, too," she said, "But we were young, remember? We didn't think a long- distance relationship would have worked out, and I still don't know if it would have, since we were so immature." Byakuya shook his head and stepped a bit closer to her.

"There is no distance between us now, my love," he told her quietly, and her eyes widened at the old pet name she hadn't realized she'd been desperate to hear for a while.

"That is," Byakuya said, even quieter, as though afraid, "If the feelings remain the same in you as they do in me." Yoruichi couldn't believe her ears. This man, the one she had loved since childhood and never stopped loving, had finally shown up again in her life and now made it obvious that he had never stopped loving her, either. Yoruichi smiled a bit.

"Always, love." And Byakuya met Yoruichi's gaze, the feelings in their eyes unmistakable.

_**I don't love you**_

_**Like I loved you**_

_**Yesterday**_

Right now, those words could not be more wrong. And as Byakuya brought Yoruichi closer for a kiss, he knew everything was as it was supposed to be.

Rukia gasped when she spotted her brother kissing her ballet teacher; it wasn't every day she got to see her brother kiss someone. No days, actually. But she wasn't the only one in the hall that was shocked. Everyone quieted down and stared at the strange anomaly before them; icy, stoic Byakuya Kuchiki kissing gorgeous, playful, fun-loving Yoruichi Shihōin. Hisana got up from her spot in between Rukia and Ichigo and toddled over to the kissing pair.

She tugged on Byakuya's pant leg and the two pulled apart. They stared at each other in surprise for a moment before smiling. Hisana, being the 'oh –so- patient' one, tugged even harder on Byakuya's pant leg, causing them both to look down. Now that she had the adult's attention, she sent them a toothy grin.

"Baku kiss pwetty lady," she giggled. Everyone laughed and Yoruichi picked Hisana off the floor and held her, making the young girl squeal in delight.

"Ooh, you bootiful," she said, tangling her small fingers in Yoruichi's hair. Yoruichi laughed.

"Thank you, darling," she said, "You must be Hisana." Rukia smiled as Yoruichi continued to talk to Hisana, watching as Byakuya also gazed at the scene with a small smile on his lips. Suddenly Ichigo stood from where they had sat to play with Hisana and held out a hand. Rukia smiled and took it. Once she was standing, Rukia gazed up at him.

"I'm glad you're so stubborn, strawberry," she said randomly. Ichigo frowned.

"Where did that come from?" Rukia smiled.

"If you hadn't been so pig- headed and moved from your seat, none of this would have happened." Ichigo smirked a bit at that.

"You know you love me, midget." Rukia smiled back.

"I know you love me, strawberry." With that Rukia wrapped her tiny arms around his neck while his went around her waist and kissed him.

Byakuya glanced over and saw Ichigo kissing his sister, but he was too happy now to kill the boy. Besides, he wasn't taking it any further and Rukia seemed happy, so he decided to let the boy live. For now.

Rukia pulled away blushing madly and smiled up at Ichigo.

"It's looks like everything is like it's supposed to be," she said. Ichigo nodded.

"Yep." Suddenly Rukia frowned.

"But hey, what about your dad? I didn't get to meet him. Didn't he come with you?" Ichigo frowned, also, and looked around.

"I don't know where the hell he could be…"

"ICHIGOOOOOOOO!"

* * *

**There we are :) I hope you liked it! I know the Nel/Grimmjow thing was a bit random, but it just came to me and I started typing it so yeah... And remember, THIS IS NOT THE END! 'Cuz next you finally get to meet Ichigo's dad :D Well, hope you liked it, my peoples! Peace out!**


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